


Silly romance story between Anna from Frozen and Melody from The Little Mermaid 2, because why not?

by ceciliasol



Category: Aladdin (1992), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Brave (2012), Frozen (Disney Movies), Tangled (2010), The Little Mermaid (1989)
Genre: Canon divergence: Anna and Kristoff are just friends, F/F, Fluff, Melody and Anna are both 21 in this story, Minor Anna/Belle, Minor unrequited Merelsa, disaster bisexuals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-18
Updated: 2021-01-03
Packaged: 2021-02-23 14:55:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 30,527
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23713282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ceciliasol/pseuds/ceciliasol
Summary: Melody is excited to go to Arendelle for the first time, for the coronation of Princess Anna.Or:Two princesses who are experts at screwing stuff up and being awkward around others meet. Disaster ensues.
Relationships: Anna/Belle (Disney), Anna/Melody (Disney), Elsa/Merida (Disney)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 22





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Eric's kingdom doesn't officially have a name, and doesn't seem to be inspired in any real world place. I made it a fictional version of Algarve, in Portugal, because I thought it would be appropriate.
> 
> (I have yet to properly proofread the whole thing, there might be a few grammar mistakes and typos along the way)

On the occasion of Melody’s eighteenth birthday, King Eric received a letter from the Kingdom of Arendelle, inviting the Royal Family of Algarvia to attend the coronation of Her Highness, Princess Elsa of Arendelle, in a month’s time. But just days prior to their departure, Melody went down with flu, and was forbidden by her parents of joining King Eric on the trip. That’s not to say she didn’t try, but the little stowaway was discovered by her father below decks and sent back to her mother in the castle just hours before the ship left port.

Now it was happening again. Queen Elsa had stepped off the throne, for reasons not entirely clear in what little correspondence Algarvia received from the Scandinavian kingdom. A new coronation would occur, and nothing would stop Melody from attending this one. She’d swim all the way to Arendelle if she had to.

She stepped into her parents’ ship and smiled, breathing in the smell of adventure.

Several days later, and fifteen hundred nautical miles away from Melody’s home, Princess Anna was nervous beyond reason. Delegations from many of the world’s greatest nations would begin arriving between today and the day of her coronation. She loved receiving foreign dignitaries, but that’s only because, in every previous occasion, the entire responsibility of diplomacy had rested on her sister’s shoulders, instead of hers. But Elsa was at the forest now, with the Northuldra, and Anna ruled Arendelle as Princess Regent. Which meant that if she ever made a diplomatic mistake, such as, say, offending a duke’s son or unintentionally starting a war, there would be nobody there to help her turn it around.

She was so nervous that she had fed Olaf’s carrot nose to Sven by mistake. So nervous she’d asked the castle steward to order flowers from Baker Blodget, and bread from the botanist. So nervous, indeed, that she forgot all her manners when the first royal family from a foreign kingdom arrived in the castle of Arendelle.

“Hi, I’m Anna!” she told the nobles, offering them a handshake. Eric furrowed his brow, and Ariel smiled, amused.

“Ahem,” said Kai, and Anna blushed as she realized she’d already messed it up. “Presenting King Eric and Queen Ariel, from the Kingdom of Algarvia. This is Her Highness, Princess Anna, Regent of Arendelle.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” said Queen Ariel, curtsying.

“I’m glad to see you well,” said King Eric. His face was familiar, but only barely so. Anna knew she must have met him in her sister’s coronation, three years before, but she’d had a lot on her mind at the time, what with meeting Prince Hans and the whole Eternal Winter thing, so she had no clear memory of the guy. Oh, well, nothing like a fresh start, right?

The three of them exchanged pleasantries, and Anna asked them about their trip. Then Anna saw another person walking into the castle gates, a girl with black hair and green eyes that was running awkwardly in a fancy dress and only just barely avoided bumping into people as she came.

“Sorry!” she told a castle guard. “Excuse me, coming through. Ack, sorry ma’am,” she said to a handmaid. King Eric sighed.

“And this,” said Kai, once the girl had joined them, “is Princess Melody of Algarvia.”

“Hey, everyone!” said the girl. “Where’s the Queen? Oh, hi, you’re gorgeous. Did you come for the coronation too?” she asked Anna, who giggled.

“In a way,” Anna replied.

“Melody,” said Ariel, calmly, but with a hint of annoyance in her voice, “meet Princess Anna of Arendelle.”

The girl’s eyes grew wide. “Wait, so you’re...” then, remembering her manners, she curtsied. “I— I’m honored, your Majesty. I mean, your Highness. No, wait...”

“Please forgive my daughter’s manners, your Highness,” said Queen Ariel. Anna could see that both of the princess’ parents were very embarrassed.

“Actually,” she told them, “your daughter is very charming.” Melody blushed when she heard her say this. “But you must be weary from your journey,” said Anna, “why don’t we let Kai show you to your rooms, and we’ll meet again for dinner at eight.”

It was a suggestion, but with Anna being the ruler of the land, it was also an order, even if spoken with kindness. The Queen and King of Algarvia both understood that well, whereas those kinds of subtleties always went right over Melody’s head.

“I think I wanna go take a look around town,” said Melody.

“In time,” Ariel retorted, sounding very displeased. And Melody knew that she’d be getting an earful later that day.

Melody was standing in the balcony of the ballroom, leaning over the parapet to look at the ocean. Dinner had been served an hour earlier, but Melody found it quite hard to enjoy. The food was somewhat different from what she was used to, but that much she had already expected. It was Ariel’s scolding that really got to her. Melody’s mother made it sound like her missteps with the Princess Regent of Arendelle could seriously compromise the trade relations between their countries, and she’d been feeling down ever since.

“I keep messing things up, Sebastian,” she told the small red crab that was perched on the parapet beside her.

“You know full well that you only have yourself to blame, Melody,” the crab replied. “If you only listened to what I always tell you, maybe you wouldn’t bring these things upon yourself.”

“I know, I know...” said Melody. “‘Act like a princess,’ right? Well, I don’t like it. I never asked to be a princess. It’s boring, stifling, and full of pointless rules...” She sighed. “Just my luck that I’m the princess of _two kingdoms_... Seriously, Sebastian, I should have been born a sailor. Or a pirate.”

Sebastian opened his mouth to say that neither of these are titles you’re born with, but was interrupted by a voice coming from the ballroom doors behind them.

“Aren’t you cold, out here?”

Melody jumped. She turned around, quickly, and pulled Sebastian behind her back, to hide him.

“C— cold? Er... maybe?” said Melody, nervously. “A little, your Ma— I mean, your Highness.”

Anna giggled. “Don’t worry about the honorific. You can call me Anna if you want. Makes things simpler.” She started walking toward the parapet. Melody sidestepped, veeeeery carefully, and stashed Sebastian inside a bushy potted plant, hoping for all that is sacred that the Princess Regent of Arendelle hadn’t seen her talking to him.

“Sure, Anna. I mean, Queen Anna. No, _princess!_ Merda, why is this so hard?” Then she realized what she’d just said, and looked up at Anna, panic-stricken. “Please tell me I’m not harming the relations between our kingdoms?”

Anna furrowed her brow. “Of course not. Were you worried about that?”

Melody nodded, looking away from the other princess’ eyes.

Anna found that absolutely endearing. She smiled.

“I like you,” she told the other woman. Then Melody looked at her with a puzzled expression on her face, and Anna found that she was the one embarrassed, this time. “Just... I mean... You’re honest, and spontaneous,” she told the southern princess. “And you don’t hide what you’re thinking. I like that in people. I’ve had my fair share of nobles who shroud in politeness to hide who they really are. So it’s good to meet people like you, Melody. Can I call you that?”

“Um... sure,” Melody replied, cheeks flushing slightly.

“That’s a pretty name,” said Princess Anna. “It means ‘song’ in English, right?”

Melody nodded. “I was born in the English sea, during one of my parents’ journeys. I think mother just found it appropriate for me to have an English name.”

That surprised Anna. “You were born in the sea? That’s pretty cool.”

“It’s a family thing,” Melody told her. “Never mind, actually. It’s a long story,” she added, hastily, after she saw the look of doubt on the other woman’s face. She knew she must change the subject, before Princess Anna thought to press her on it. “What about your name? Does it mean anything? Like, in Arendellian...”

Anna shook her head. “Nope, just a name. A common one, in fact. Nothing special about it.”

Melody watched the princess talk with admiration.

“You seem plenty special to me,” she said, absentmindedly.

“Excuse me?” said Anna, smiling, and Melody turned to look at the sea, hoping the dim light of late evening would suffice to hide her flushed cheeks from the woman by her side.

“...because you’re the Queen,” Melody added, in a desperate attempt to save herself from humiliation. “Or, well, will be soon, right? And we’re nearly the same age. I think that’s pretty impressive. I mean, I can’t imagine myself as a Queen. I can’t even imagine myself as the princess my parents want me to be.” She sighed. “I hate being a princess, to be honest.”

Anna nodded, slowly, looking at Melody’s saddened eyes.

“Det er aldri så galt at det ikke er godt for noe...”

Melody furrowed her brow, then let out a laugh.

“I’m sorry, I have no idea what you just told me.”

“It means that there’s always a good side to every bad situation,” Anna explained. “Melody, if you weren’t a princess, I don’t think we would ever have met. And I’m glad that we did. I wasn’t joking before, I really like you.”

Melody felt a warmth inside her chest. She looked at Anna, and they both smiled. “You’re not too bad, yourself,” she told the princess regent. “Say, can you teach me some more Arendellian?”

“Only if you teach me Algarvese.”

Melody laughed. “Right,” she said. And she took a moment to think of a phrase she would want to tell Anna. Melody looked at the princess’ face, beautifully illuminated by the moonlight and the light of gas lamps that burned in the ballroom nearby. Anna had her hair neatly put up in a milkmaid braid, exposing her ears and framing her face in a way that very much complimented her beautiful facial features. Melody’s first impression of Anna had been right, after all, she really was gorgeous.

“Tu és a pessoa mais linda que eu já conheci.”

Anna raised her eyebrows. “Sounds... interesting. What does it mean?”

“It means that it was nice to meet you,” Melody improvised.

Upon hearing that, Anna chuckled. “No, it doesn’t,” she said, smiling broadly.

“What do you mean?” asked Melody, startled.

Anna leaned closer to her, and said, as if telling a secret: “Eu entendi o que tu me disseste.”

Melody’s eyes widened, her cheeks burned fiercely, and her legs seemed to want to give out. “Excuse me,” she told the other woman, then turned and walked back toward the ballroom in a brisk pace.

“Melody!” Anna called after her. “You forgot your crab!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you can't read those two lines in Portuguese, I strongly suggest you translate them in google. <3
> 
> (But don't worry, I don't plan on putting any more Norwegian or Portuguese in the story)


	2. Chapter 2

Melody was lying down in the guest’s room bed, freaking out.

“My goodness, I can’t believe I just did that,” she told the empty room. “And I can’t believe _she_ just did that! ‘Teach me Algarvese’, why of course your Highness, except you speak the freaking language already! And of course I had to go and embarrass myself. ‘You’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever met.’ HAH! Can you believe I said that? I should have gone with ‘good evening’ or ‘how are you doing’, y’know, normal stuff, what even got into me go say something like that? Now she must think I’m such a weirdo. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to look her in the eyes again. I don’t know what to do. Help me out here, Sebastian...”

Melody stopped her rambling and waited for the crab to give his pedantic input on her behavior. Sebastian could really be a stick-in-the-mud sometimes... well, most times... but he was also one of Melody’s closest friends, and she really could use his help right then.

Silence.

“Sebastian?” Melody called. Then realization hit her, and she jumped off the bed to go retrieve her crustacean friend from the plant she’d stashed him in.

Upstairs in Anna’s private chambers, the princess regent and her best friend were having a drink together. The princess was at her third glass already, and alcohol was starting to work its effects on her inhibitions. Which usually meant either Anna dancing (to no music), talking about her sister, or seeking love advice. This time, it was the latter.

“She’s such a good girl, Kris,” she told Kristoff, using the nickname the mountain man liked least, often a good indicator of Anna’s state of inebriation. “She’s fun, and open, and charming, and pretty... my goodness, _is_ she pretty...”

Kristoff was unimpressed. He’d already seen Anna like that at least a dozen times. He felt bad for her. They were both hopeless romantics, but Kristoff was more down to earth, while Anna built castles in the air every time she had a new crush on someone. So far, it has never worked out for her. And she was a fantastic person, Kristoff knew, it was a terrible shame that she was so ill-fated at love.

But let’s not digress, there’s an important matter at hand to attend to, namely, Anna’s current crush.

“And you know that moment when you realize that you finally met the right person for you, and suddenly everything makes sense?”

“Yeah,” said Kristoff. “You’ve had that moment about six times in the past. I don’t think you should go by that.”

“It’s different this time,” Anna tried to argue.

“You said that too, the other times,” said Kristoff. “Anna, look... I really wanna support you on this... but I’m worried you might be falling in love too fast for someone you only just barely met. _Again_.”

“You don’t think I have a chance?” asked Anna, mildly hurt.

“It’s not that,” the mountain man countered. “Of course you have a chance, but... I just don’t want you to disappoint yourself. You always have that thing of falling hard for someone you don’t know very well, and then it goes wrong, and you spend weeks down in the dumps. I know you. I’ve been there, taking care of you, many of those times. Face it, Anna, your track record isn’t very good.”

Anna felt outraged. “That’s so not true.”

“Hans?” Kristoff asked.

“Oh, shut up! That was ages ago. I was young and naïve.”

“Anna?”

“What?”

“That was three years ago. You’re still young and naïve.”

Anna hissed. “Hans doesn’t count. He was a manipulative jerk. I admit I may have fallen for his tricks, but I also learned from it. And Melody’s nothing like him anyway. She’s honest, and a great person. Besides, I just wanna date her, it’s not like I wanna get engaged again. Not yet.”

Kristoff sighed. “Anna, you don’t even know if she’s gay. Do I have to remind you of what happened with Rapunzel?”

Anna scrunched her face. “I thought Eugene was her brother or something,” she admitted. Not the most pleasant of memories. She was lucky to have been able to remain friends with them after what happened, it would have been terrible to lose one of Arendelle’s most important allies.

“Tiana?” Kristoff continued.

Anna sighed. “Why do they all have to be married?”

Kristoff smirked, knowing that the next one would be a killer.

“Belle?”

This time, the princess wailed. “Oh, no, don’t remind me!” she protested.

“Do you see what I mean?” Kristoff asked. “I love you Anna, you’re like a sister to me, but you have to stop dreaming so much about people you don’t know. So you have a new crush, that’s great, but take it slow, get to know her, don’t just start off with huge expectations... I just don’t want to see you getting hurt again.”

Anna shrugged, feeling annoyed, then looked into her friend’s eyes, and nodded. “You’re right. I won’t get my hopes up.”

Kristoff smiled. Anna was somewhat thick-headed, and it was often hard work trying to get through to her, but the mountain man knew it was worth it.

More delegations arrived in Arendelle the next morning. To Melody, that was a relief, because it meant the princess regent was kept busy most of the time, and Melody was able to avoid having an awkward conversation with her. She was still too embarrassed about the previous night to face Anna then.

Unfortunately, it also meant she had a lot of new people to meet. Don’t get me wrong, Melody loved meeting new people. She simply preferred to do that without all of the stupid rules and customs of noblesse getting in the way.

“You seem nervous,” said a voice, startling her. Melody turned to look. The girl standing beside her was wearing a beautiful and delicate purple dress, with earrings to match. She must be royalty too. Yet, her hair was unkempt, and she leaned against the wall in a way that was about exactly how her mother had always reprehended her from doing. Not too noble-like, Melody supposed.

“Umm... too many people,” she spoke to the girl. “I don’t know half of the nobles here, and I have a strong feeling I was supposed to.”

The woman laughed. “I totally get you,” she said. And then offered Melody a handshake. “I’m Rapunzel.”

Melody hesitated a little, then shook her hand. For a noblewoman, Rapunzel really didn’t seem to want to follow all the rules of etiquette. It was delightfully surprising. Melody wished she could be like that, without Ariel nagging her about it.

“Melody,” she introduced herself.

“Hm? Pretty name,” said Rapunzel. “Are you English?”

Melody shook her head. “No, I’m... from the south. Ever heard of Algarvia?”

Rapunzel’s eyes widened. “No kidding? You’re Ariel’s daughter?!” She grinned. “Well,  _of course_ you are. You look a lot like her. Oh my goodness, I love your mother. She’s so nice.”

Melody frowned. “You only say that ‘cause  _you’re_ not her daughter.”

“Well...” said Rapunzel, sounding much less cheerful then. “I don’t have a great history with mothers, so I think I get the idea. Do you mind if we talk about something else? This stuff kind of gets me down.”

“By all means,” said Melody, quoting what Ariel’s lessons on etiquette had imprinted on her through the years.

Rapunzel took a piece of chocolate from the table nearby, and nibbled it. “So, have you met Princess Anna yet?” she asked.

Oh, boy... _Her_. Well, it would be okay, it was an innocent question. All she had to do was act natural.

“I... have. Yesterday.”

“What do you think of her?”

Melody stopped to think for a bit, before answering. “Princess Anna is...” beautiful, interesting, seemingly very intelligent, and a bit of a prankster, were the first few words that crossed Melody’s mind. “...queer,” she concluded.

The brunette with messy hair laughed. “I don’t think anyone’s ever answered that before,” she explained, “but I suppose it’s true. Princess Anna can be very queer. Very, very queer.”

Hearing that left Melody feeling puzzled, wondering if there was a hidden meaning in those words. Maybe Rapunzel knew something about Anna that she didn’t?

About then, a tall man with broad shoulders and a very unfashionable goatee walked up to them, and took Rapunzel’s arm in his.

“Hello again, my love,” he told her.

Rapunzel giggled. “Melody,” she said, “this is my fiancée, sir Eugene  Fitzherbert,” then, turning to him, she continued: “this is Princess Melody of Algarvia.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, your Highness,” said sir Eugene, bowing.

“Likewise,” said Melody, curtsying.

“So, anyway, darling, I may have some bad news for you,” said Rapunzel, with a smile that indicated that whatever the bad news were, they weren’t bad for herself. “Melody here just invited me for a girls’ night with her and the other princesses, tonight, and I gladly accepted. Unfortunately, this means we’ll have to cancel our evening outing.”

“What?!” exclaimed Eugene, looking saddened. “Oh, man... I really wanted to take you to the mountains again. I guess I need to go warn the stable boy. Wait here, I’ll be right back.”

And with that, Eugene was off.

“Excuse me?” said Melody, surprised. “A girls’ night?”

“Play along,” said Rapunzel, giggling. “Eugene’s been bothering me about going horseback riding to the Black Mountains, to see the stars or whatever. But honestly, it was a long trip, and I’m tired, I really don’t wanna have to leave the castle tonight. And besides, I know you said you were nervous about meeting new people, earlier, but don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll like them.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I won’t try to reproduce Merida’s accent here. I’m not from anywhere near Scotland, never been to Scotland, and I know it would sound very artificial if I tried to copy it. Besides, the other characters in this scene are all of different nationalities, and they would all have different accents anyway, so Merida’s hardly the odd one out.
> 
> Also, I don’t think this needs saying, not here in AO3, but we know Brave’s supposed to be set in a medieval age, while Frozen is very clearly set in 19th century. So please consider that I'm using a slightly alternate version of Brave that’s set around the 1850s. Thanks.

Melody was finding the princesses to be a lot different from what she’d expected. Growing up in the court of Algarvia, all she ever met were boring stuck-up nobles with a fancy for fancy. Rapunzel and her friends were none of the sort.

“Hold on, you married a _thief_?” she asked Jasmine, befuddled. “And... your parents were okay with that?”

Jasmine shrugged. “Um, yeah. I suppose. I mean, dad wanted me to marry some royal fancy-pants, at first, but after Aladdin saved him from his evil advisor, I think that helped change his mind.”

“Really cool guy, Aladdin,” said Merida, sitting sprawled on a couch nearby, eating an apple. “Taught me a few sleight of hand tricks.” She raised her free hand to show an object that glimmered in it. It just so happened to be Jasmine’s headband. Whenever did she manage to snag that? Melody was certain she hadn’t seen it happening.

“Now you give me that!” demanded Jasmine, outraged, and the... very very large and scary tiger by her side growled, as if to back up his owner’s demand with a little threat. Merida smiled, and tossed the headband in the air for Jasmine to catch.

The five of them — Melody, Rapunzel, Merida and Jasmine, plus scary tiger — were sitting on pillows and blankets in the center of one of the castle’s small drawing rooms. The fireplace burned nearby, setting a very cozy atmosphere in the room.

“Eugene was sort of a thief at first, too,” said Rapunzel, who was sitting closest to Melody, by the fire. “But he changed a lot after we met.”

Hearing that shocked Melody even more. Not because it was Eugene, because, you know, who would trust a guy with a goatee? What really baffled her was that all these princesses seemed to have a level of freedom which was unthinkable for her back home.

“I could never do something like that,” Melody declared. “My mother would skin me alive. I mean... all of my life was just a succession of rules that I had to abide to, to conform to, and mother would reprehend me any time I did something even slightly outside of the rules. It’s like I live constrained, always having to meet her stupid expectations.”

“Oh, I can totally relate to that,” Merida declared. “Mum’s always tried to push me into being this sort of perfect princess, when I was younger... Then I turned her into a bear. Kiiind of a misstep. But we worked things out.”

“Whoa whoa whoa, wait there!” exclaimed Melody. “You turned your mother into a bear? You mean, like, with actual magic?”

Merida shrugged. “Hm, yeah. Why?”

“Because... most of the people I know are afraid of magic. They think it’s dangerous.”

Rapunzel shook her head, seemingly undecided. “I guess some people are, Mel,” she concluded, and Melody couldn’t help but notice the nickname. Mel? “But really, you’re in the castle of Princess Anna of Arendelle,” Rapunzel continued. “Have you ever heard the stories about her sister? The Snow Queen?”

Melody nodded. She’d overheard the sailors talking about this during the trip.

“And either way,” said Rapunzel, “all of us here have already been involved with magic in the past, so it’s not like it scares us.”

“It’s true,” said Jasmine, caressing Rajah’s fur. The tiger purred. “One of my closest friends is a djinn. Or a genie, as you call them.”

“And I have healing powers,” said Rapunzel. “I even brought Eugene back from the dead once.”

“Isn’t that what they call a necromancer?” Merida asked, raising an eyebrow.

Rapunzel glared at her. “I prefer to call it the magical power of love,” she said, haughtily.

Merida chortled. “Yeah, right.”

They were interrupted by the creaking of a door on the far side of the room. Melody, who sat with her back to the door, didn’t see who it was, at first. But she heard it very clearly when the woman sitting opposite her announced the name.

“Anna!” Jasmine called.

Melody’s blood ran cold.

“Sorry I’m late, everyone,” Melody heard her say. Jasmine moved to the side, to give the girl a place to sit, and soon enough, the princess regent of Arendelle had joined their group. Her eyes fell on Melody, and she seemed surprised, more so than delighted. “Oh, Melody! I... didn’t expect to see you here.”

 _Right back at ya_ , Melody thought. But of course she would be. Melody felt stupid for not having realized that fact earlier. And really, however much she was enjoying to meet Rapunzel’s friends, it wasn’t enough to outweigh her embarrassment and desire to run away. Had she realized she’d be meeting Anna again in such an intimate setting, Melody would probably have found an excuse not to be there.

“She’s my pretext,” Rapunzel announced. “Thanks to Mel here I’m with you guys tonight rather than in a cold tent in the wretched Black Mountains. Because that seems to be Eugene’s idea of fun.”

Jasmine nodded, compassionately. Merida, who loved exploring places exactly like those, only shrugged. Melody and Anna were both nervously stealing glances at each other, and hardly paid any attention to what Rapunzel had just said.

“Hey, you know who’s missing?” asked Jasmine. “Belle! Is she coming to the co—” and she silenced herself, suddenly aware of how both Rapunzel and Merida were furtively trying to signal for her to stop. Jasmine furrowed her brow, having no idea why it would be so bad for her to talk about Belle. Melody didn’t know either, but she knew it must be something serious, because the lighthearted atmosphere of the group instantly turned tense, and even the air seemed a little chillier. “...and you know what?” Jasmine continued, trying to fix the blunder, “I’m desperately craving some chocolate right now. Does Melody know that Arendellian chocolate is the best in the world?”

“Why don’t we go to the kitchen to fetch some, Jas?” Merida suggested.

“I want mine dark,” Rapunzel announced, watching as the two women exited the room together, frantically whispering to each other, with Rajah following close behind. Rapunzel rolled her eyes. Discretion wasn’t one of Merida’s qualities, but she had expected better from Jasmine.

Melody was so nervous she was starting to sweat. She kept her gaze fixed at the dancing flames in the fireplace, to avoid meeting Anna’s eyes. Now that it was just her, Rapunzel and Anna in the room, it somehow seemed even more embarrassing than before.

She heard a sigh.

“I’m sorry,” said Anna, sounding saddened and defeated. “It’s my fault.”

“It’s _not_ your fault, Anna,” Rapunzel stated, protectively. “It’s nobody’s fault. Things just... happened in a certain way, and it ended bad. But don’t ever blame yourself for that.”

Melody found herself staring at Anna’s face. She looked so miserable just then, so hurt, that it even began to hurt inside Melody’s chest as well. That hardly looked like the same woman she’d met the day before. The same Princess Anna who was so lively, outspoken, witty... now looked so saddened all of a sudden. What could have caused that change? And whatever it was, Melody found that she hated it. She felt that nothing had the right to steal the joy from the woman who was standing in front of her, then.

Anna raised her eyes to look at Melody. “I suppose I should tell you,” said the Arendellian.

“You don’t have to,” Melody found herself saying.

“It’s okay,” the other woman retorted. “Belle was... a great friend of all of us here, and a really close friend of mine. Then, a few months ago, she was going through a bit of a rough patch with her lover, they were taking time off each other, and I... I really misread a lot of the signs, and I made a stupid mistake.” Anna sighed. “Well, she hates me, now. But who can blame her?”

Melody was instantly taken over by some unusual courage and resolution, and she surprised Anna, and herself, when she said, firmly: “I can!” And after a moment of silence, during which both Rapunzel and Anna looked at her in surprise, she added: “Anna you... I know I just met you yesterday, but I really think you’re a great person. So you made a mistake? Well, everyone does. The way I see it, it doesn’t matter what you did, I’m sure that if this Belle girl was such a good friend of yours she could have found it in herself to forgive you.”

There was another moment of silence. The courage that had taken over Melody was beginning to wane, and was being replaced by just a sliver of fear. Did she overstep? Had she said something really, really wrong, for some reason? What if Anna got mad at her?

Melody’s negative thoughts were interrupted by Rapunzel.

“Mel’s right!” she told Anna. “You always forgive me and the girls when we make a mess here in the castle, and you know we’ll always forgive you for anything you do. You kissed me too, and I forgave you, didn’t I?” she chuckled once she said it. “I know you miss Belle, we all do, but I’m sure that, eventually, Belle will realize that this was all a misunderstanding, and she’ll come around. Just wait.”

“Rapunzel, please...” Anna begged.

It took a few seconds for Rapunzel’s words to register on Melody’s mind. And when they did, something about them seemed a little off.

 _You kissed me too_ , Rapunzel had said.

What did she mean by that?

Did she mean, like, a kiss on the cheek? Sure, it was unusual, and even a little odd, for most nobles, but it was hardly enough reason for a close friend to get angry and cut ties with someone. So, what kind of kiss was it?

Melody watched a vivid blush spread from Anna’s cheeks to her earlobes, and couldn’t help but notice that the princess regent of Arendelle seemed to be avoiding looking at her.

_Oh._


	4. Chapter 4

Anna wanted to murder Rapunzel. The princess of Arendelle had felt pushed into a corner when Jasmine mentioned Belle and everyone else started acting all weird about it. But even as she decided to tell Melody the story behind that, Anna had no intention of mentioning the kiss, or any kiss, for that matter. Melody and Anna were just beginning to get to know each other, it would be horrible if this revelation ruined the friendship they were trying to cultivate.

Melody herself didn’t show any signs of being bothered by it, or in fact, of even having heard about the kiss at all. But she must have, Anna knew. There was no way she didn’t hear what Rapunzel said, back there. Was Melody pretending she hadn’t heard, for Anna’s sake? Did it seriously not bother her, or was she simply acting like that to be polite? It was lucky that Jas and Mer came back so fast, because Anna didn’t know how much longer she could stand that awkward situation with just the three of them.

It was hours after that when the group finally decided to call it a night. Jasmine had returned with Rajah to their rooms. Rajah slept inside the castle, because nobody would dare take him away from Jas, and the grooms were not having that creature in the stables. Rapunzel and Merida were playing chess on a very beautiful carved wood set that Merida had gifted Anna for her birthday, a few years back. It was a bit hard to get used to the pieces, since they were all figures of bears, but one could do it with a little patience.

Melody was standing alone on the balcony. The sight gave Anna butterflies. _This is it_ , she thought, before making her way there as well. Time to face the truth.

“Hey...” she said, joining Melody on the parapet. “No crab this time?”

Melody smiled. “I left Sebastian with mom.”

Anna nodded, slowly. “It’s pretty cool that you have a pet crab. First time I’ve seen one,” she said, and Melody covered her mouth to hide a smile, wondering what Sebastian would think if he knew he was being called a _pet_. Anna cleared her throat. “Sorry about the girls,” she said, “they can be a bit overwhelming at times.”

“It’s cool,” Melody said, smiling. “I loved meeting them. They’re... unusual,” her comment made Anna chuckle. “But it’s a good unusual,” Melody added. “A really good one.”

Silence fell between them. Twice Anna opened her mouth to say something, but reconsidered it. She desperately wanted to know what Melody had thought about that story of her and Belle, but she had no idea how to approach the subject without making it awkward or accusatory.

Luckily, Melody did.

“So...” said the southern princess, “...you and Rapunzel, huh?”

Anna felt her cheeks grow hot, and knew she must have been blushing fiercely, then. Melody smirked. Anna stammered, panicked, and found herself unable to form a coherent phrase.

“This... I— I mean... she... we... argh...” she felt frustrated.

Melody laughed. “Gotcha!” she told the other woman. “That’s payback for yesterday, miss Teach-Me-Algarvese.”

Anna was flabbergasted. She smiled, and let out a breath she’d been holding. “You’re unbelievable,” she told Melody, and they laughed together.

 _This is good_ , Anna thought. Melody was just talking to her like normal... Well, no. Actually, she seemed even more at ease with Anna than in the previous night. She was laughing, and joking, and it made the Arendellian princess feel much more comfortable with opening herself to her new friend.

“It was just the one kiss,” she told Melody. “I had no idea she and Eugene were together, at the time. Did it really not bother you that I kissed her?”

Melody seemed to think about that one for a moment, before answering. “Well, it shocked me a little, to be honest. But... it didn’t bother me, no...” Anna nodded slowly. If it had shocked her, then that meant she wasn’t unfazed at the revelation. But she said it didn’t bother her... What to make of this?

After a moment of silence, Melody looked at her, and asked:

“So, how was it?”

“How was... what?” Anna inquired, confused.

“The kiss, silly,” said Melody.

“Oh! Right...” My goodness, what a tricky question. How should she put it? “It was... good?” Anna described, tentatively. “For exactly two seconds. Then Blondie started laughing and that’s when I realized I’d made a mistake.”

“Blondie?” Melody asked, grinning.

“It’s what Eugene always calls her,” Anna explained. “The nickname stuck.”

“But she’s a brunette!” Melody tried to argue.

“Well, she is _now_ ,” Anna told her, emphasizing the last word. “There’s a story behind it. I’ll tell you one of these days.”

“I’ll hold you to that,” said Melody, making the other girl chuckle.

Their eyes met. They were both smiling. It was so comfortable, being around Melody. So maybe there was no “special moment when you finally realize you’ve met the right person,” or whatever she’d told herself and Kristoff through the years, but this feeling... this calm happiness she felt when she was beside the southern princess... that was good enough. For a moment, neither of them spoke. And yet, the silence wasn’t awkward. It was a gentle silence, as if no words needed to be spoken. Anna moved closer to Melody, just the slightest bit... and that’s when she noticed the two pairs of eyes that were on her, from inside the drawing room. Merida and Rapunzel were watching. Anna closed her eyes and pursed her lips, annoyed. What’s with the audience? Damn.

“Let’s go inside,” she told Melody. “I’m freezing out here.”

Melody found herself unable to sleep, that night. Her mind kept going back to the events of the evening, with Rapunzel and the others... and particularly with Princess Anna. Ever since she’d arrived at Arendelle, it had been nothing but one surprise after the other. Meeting the other princesses was a particularly shocking one.

Jasmine married a thief.

Rapunzel was engaged to another.

Merida behaved like an outlaw.

And Anna stole kisses from unsuspecting girls.

Melody laughed. What an unusual bunch. She found that she much preferred these nobles, rather than the ones she knew from back home. She wished Ariel could see this, and realize that her daughter didn’t have to be a perfect princess to be happy. Maybe she should turn Ariel into a bear? That seemed to work for some people.

She remembered princess Anna smiling at her on the balcony, and felt a tug in her chest. Anna was always gorgeous, but she was particularly dazzling when she smiled like that. And those gentle blue eyes... blue, like the ocean she so loved. For a moment, she wished it had been her Anna had kissed, instead of Rapunzel.

...wait, what?

Melody’s eyebrows went up, and she stared at the ceiling of her room, shocked at her own thoughts.

Was she... daydreaming of kissing Princess Anna of Arendelle?

Did she _want_ for them to kiss?

Why?

She was starting to feel nervous. Melody turned around in the bed, facing the wall. She closed her eyes, and tried to imagine herself kissing Princess Anna. Suddenly, a wave of heat seemed to wash over her body, focusing on her chest and ears, and she opened her eyes and sat up, panting slightly.

“What’s wrong with me?” she asked the empty room.


	5. Chapter 5

Melody barely saw Anna the next morning. Between having to manage a kingdom on her own, and the preparations for her coronation ceremony, in a few days, Anna was probably kept busy and couldn’t spend much time acting as host for her guests.

It gave her mixed feelings. After the previous night, a part of which spent awake daydreaming of a kiss between the two noblewomen, Melody found that it hurt her, just a little, to think of Anna or to be near her. And yet, she couldn’t stop thinking of the girl, and she longed to be beside her all the time. Melody knew what that contradictory feeling was.

She was pacing around the castle courtyard, when she saw Rapunzel talking to a countess near the stables. The girl saw her too, and walked up to her. After a few minutes walking around, just chatting idly, Rapunzel decided to ask Melody about what was bothering her.

“Sooo...” Rapunzel began to say, “why the sad face, Mel?”

Melody shrugged. “Just... thinking about stuff, I guess.”

“Stuff... yeah...” said Rapunzel. “So, does this ‘stuff’ have a name?”

Melody laughed. “It does, yes,” she admitted. Then her face fell again. She sighed. “I think I may have fallen in love with Anna.”

Rapunzel’s eyes grew wide. “Whoa whoa whoa, slow down, girl!” she exclaimed. “You mean... _princess_ Anna? Like, our friend?”

Melody nodded, sadly. “I can’t stop thinking about her.”

Rapunzel stopped walking, stunned, while she dealt with the shock of that revelation.

“Wow...” she said. “Wow! Melody, are you sure about this? About your feelings, that is.”

Melody scoffed. “I’ve been in love before, I kinda know how it goes,” she argued. “It’s just that all the other times, they were...”

“Guys?” Rapunzel asked, finishing the other woman’s sentence for her.

 _Well, I was thinking more like, mermen_ , thought Melody, _but sure, let’s go with that_. She nodded.

“Does liking a girl bother you?” Rapunzel asked.

Melody shook her head. “It doesn’t bother me. I’m just... scared, I guess.”

Rapunzel shot the other girl a puzzled look. There was a message in her eyes, Melody knew. A question. _Scared of what?_ she seemed to be asking.

Melody was scared of a lot of things.

She was scared that Anna would reject her, and that then they wouldn’t be able to remain friends and spend time together anymore. Scared that Anna would find out about her being half-mermaid, and would fear her or despise her. Scared of what Ariel would say, if she ever knew her daughter was bisexual... But most of all, scared that after Anna’s coronation, after Melody’s inevitable return to Algarvia, the two of them would never see each other again. Melody thought this idea was the scariest thing in the world.

Without warning, tears started rolling down her cheeks. It startled Rapunzel, who pulled the girl into a hug.

“Hey, calm down,” she said, patting Mel’s back. “It will be all right, I promise.”

“Sorry...” said Melody, wiping her cheeks.

Rapunzel pulled back a little, to look at Melody’s face. “Mel, look,” she said, “whatever happens, I’ll be here for you. Okay? We’re friends now.”

Melody smiled. “Thank you.”

Rapunzel had a plan. Not a very good one, really, but it was the only one she had. She realized that, in order to help Melody, she needed to find out what Princess Anna thought of her Algarvese friend. And the way to do that would be to pester her with questions all night long.

Anna noticed that her best friend was acting strange.

It was a party. A ball, in celebration of Anna’s coronation, which would happen in a few days. With just a handful of guests still to arrive in Arendelle, Anna thought that putting together a ball would be a nice way of keeping her guests entertained, while at the same time giving her something to think about that wasn’t the coronation, even if just for one night. She needed the distraction. And besides, why have a ballroom with no balls, right?

But she wasn’t being entirely successful in this plan of using the ball to let off some steam, and that was entirely due to her best friend’s unusually nosy behavior.

“So... anyone here catches your eye?” Rapunzel asked. The short-haired girl scanned the crowd for Melody, and found her talking to Aladdin near the buffet.

That question made Anna anxious. She too, had spotted Melody among the crowd, but instantly averted her eyes. After that conversation with Kristoff, the other day, Anna thought she knew better than to keep her hopes up. For starters, the princess of Algarvia was probably straight. She might even have a lover already. And even if neither of those were true, there was no reason to believe she’d ever look Anna’s way. The Princess Regent of Arendelle knew her chances were slim to none.

“No,” she lied. “Nothing of the sort. Why do you ask?”

“No reason,” Rapunzel lied as well. “I was just wondering what might be going on in your heart. Doesn’t anyone here interest you? Not even a little?”

Anna was feeling increasingly uncomfortable with that conversation.

“I’m really... trying to focus on the coronation ceremony and all my duties as a Queen. I have no time for love affairs.” Oh, goodness, she wasn't even queen yet and she was already beginning to sound like Elsa.

Rapunzel wasn’t satisfied with that answer.

“Okay, but supposing you were interested in someone here, who would it be?”

Anna sighed. “Nobody, Blondie. I just told you, I’m not interested in romance right now. I’m being rational, here. This will be better for me and for the kingdom. No more daydreams or delusions. It’s not like she would like me back, anyway.”

Rapunzel’s eyes gleamed. “Who?” she asked.

“Who what?” Anna retorted.

“Who wouldn’t like you? You just said ‘she’ wouldn’t like you back, so there’s obviously a ‘she’ here. Who is her?”

Anna felt her cheeks growing hot, noticing her slip of the tongue.

“Nobody,” she replied. “I don’t like anyone.”

“But you said she wouldn’t like you, what did you mean by that?” Rapunzel pressed.

“I meant in general,” said Anna. “Whether it’s a ‘he’ or a ‘she’, it doesn’t matter. The people I have feelings for never like me back. So why would it be different with her?”

Rapunzel almost jumped with joy. That was two slip-ups in a row, it was as good as if she had flat-out confessed it.

“I knew it! There’s someone!”

“There is _not!_ ” said Anna, decisively. The heat in her cheeks grew stronger. If the blush on her face hadn’t been visible before, it definitely was now. “Blondie, I swear, if you keep asking me questions like these, I’ll have you sleep in Sven’s shed for the rest of the week.”

“You wouldn’t,” Rapunzel countered, cheekily.

“Try me,” said Anna. She sounded serious, and Rapunzel knew better than to test her luck. Knowing her friend, that might not be an empty threat, after all. But it didn’t matter. She had already gotten some of the information she had been prying for.

Anna liked someone. And that someone was a woman.

The next step would be to try and find out the identity of that mysterious love interest. It could be that Anna had feelings for some random lady from a nearby kingdom. If so, Melody had better give up, because Anna would only have eyes for this other person for weeks, even after getting a broken heart.

On the other hand, there was a slim chance the person Anna liked was Melody, and wouldn’t that be perfect if it were true?

Rapunzel giggled.

_Just you wait, Anna, I’m going to find out what your secret is._

It was late in the evening, the party had been going on for a while, and people were starting to call it a night. Melody walked into the castle courtyard, feeling a little lightheaded from the champagne. She stumbled around for a little bit, until she came across a rather stunning place, in a secluded part of the castle grounds. It was a garden with a majestic willow tree in the center. Candlelight lamps were hanging from its branches, and the way the light danced with the breeze made that place look like it came straight out of a fairy tale. Melody walked up to the tree, as if entranced by it.

The stone path went around the tree, and ended at the dark waters of the fjord. She could see the light from the tree’s candles reflected over the water’s surface. Melody took her shoes off, and walked forward until she was ankle-deep into the river. She smiled. Feeling the water around her feet was such a heartwarming feeling! It had only been a few days since Melody had left her hometown, and yet she couldn’t put into words how much she missed the sea.

“Just a quick dip,” she told herself. “I’ll be back in no time.”

Melody looked around to make sure she was alone, then started to undress. It wouldn’t do to return to the party with her clothes all drenched, right? Sure, her hair would get wet, but there was nothing she could to about that, particularly. She continued stripping until she was wearing nothing but the shell-shaped pendant around her neck. Then she hid her clothes inside a bush of red flowers, and walked into the waters of the fjord, until she was waist-deep in them.

She took the locket in her hands, and opened it. Atlantica’s lullaby filled the air around her, accompanied by that miniature image of the kingdom that glowed inside the shell. Melody raised the locket to her lips, and whispered into it.

“Take me down to the sea.”

The pendant glowed, and its light enveloped her. Melody giggled, feeling the spell tickle the soles of her feet until they were no longer feet, but fins. King Triton had enchanted the locket with that spell as a gift for Melody’s sixteenth birthday, and the girl couldn’t think of a gift she loved more than that one.

Now as a mermaid, Melody plunged deep into the salty waters, using the light of her locket as a sort of lantern, illuminating the dark waters around her. For a moment (just a moment), all of her worries were washed away from her, and the girl could swim through the fjord feeling completely free.

Melody lost track of time. When she finally decided to swim back to the castle, she had no idea whether she’d been gone for thirty minutes, or three hours. She emerged onto the shore near the garden, and was just about to recite the counterspell into her locket... when she heard a voice.

“Who’s there?” it said.

Stunned, Melody sunk her upper body into the water, and closed her locket to hide its light. She looked around, and saw Anna walking across the garden toward her. _Oh, great!_ Of all the people that could run in on her naked and finned, it just had to be her. _Just my luck, huh?_ thought the mermaid.

“Melody?” Anna inquired, thoroughly surprised. “What are you doing there?”

“Oh, heeeey... Princess Anna... what a coincidence, no?” she drifted a few centimeters away from the shore. She hoped her body was well hidden inside the dark waters. “Fancy meeting you here... I was just, eh... going for a little swim, you know. To do some exercise.”

Anna giggled, took off her shoes, and sat by the water’s edge, feet inside the water. “In the middle of the night?”

“Oh, yeah,” said Melody. “I mean, why not? It’s a great time for swimming. My favorite, even. It’s perfect for floating around and watching the stars.”

Anna smiled. “Is that true?” she asked. “I must admit you’re making it sound rather appealing... Say, is it okay if I join you?”

Melody’s eyebrows shot up. _What?! No!_ Did Anna just suggest they swam together? Sure, Melody would have loved that suggestion at any other time, but not when she was magically transformed into a mermaid. A naked one at that.

But she found herself unable to refuse. It was, after all, Anna’s castle, and she was simply a guest. Rather than Anna asking her for permission, she’s the one who should have asked before going in.

“By all means,” said the southern girl, already regretting her words.

Melody watched, mesmerized, as Anna started to undress in front of her. It was getting her aroused. She kicked herself for it. _This isn’t the time to for that!_ thought the girl. And yet she couldn’t take her eyes off the other woman.

Anna folded her clothes and laid them in a pile nearby. She walked into the fjord, wearing nothing but underwear. “Cold!” she complained, hugging herself, and Melody couldn’t help but giggle. One advantage of being half-mermaid was that she never felt cold in the water.

“You’ll get used to it,” she argued.

Anna took a few more steps, going deeper. “At least it’s still early autumn. I don’t think I could ever bring myself to do this if it was, say, November. I’m surprised it doesn’t bother you.”

Melody smiled. “The water could never bother me. I just love the sea... And I guess fjords are pretty cool, too.”

Anna giggled. “Look, Mel, I’m freezing to death and I can’t think straight right now, but this place is my home, so I’m really glad you’re enjoying it.”

They smiled at each other. Anna began to swim around, and Melody made sure to stay always at least a meter away from her. She didn’t want her tail to accidentally brush the other woman’s legs and cause a reaction.

“By the way,” said Anna, “I remember that when you arrived, you mentioned wanting to take a look around the town. Have you done that already?” Melody shook her head. “In that case, would you like to accompany me tomorrow? I have some free time, and I could show you around... Oh, but don’t feel pressured to accept. It’s totally okay if you don’t wa—”

“I want to,” Melody interrupted her. Then, remembering her manners, she tried again: “I mean... I would love to accompany you tomorrow, your highness.”

Anna smirked. “I told you before, you can just call me Anna. And I don’t care about formalities and polite speech either, not when it’s just the two of us.”

Melody felt a tug in her chest. Anna was talking to her as if she was a close friend. It made her feel almost hopeful. _This is bad for my heart_ , thought the mermaid.

“So... you said something about floating around and watching the stars. I kind of feel like doing that now,” said Anna. She swam up to Melody, and took one of the girl’s hands in hers. “Care to join me, princess?”

Melody blushed.

She was a princess. She’d been called a princess her whole life, and that had never caused her to feel any sort of emotion before, except for a little annoyance from time to time. So why was it that she felt so giddy when Anna was the one saying it? It was... contradictory.

The memory of her first night on the balcony with Anna came back to Melody then. Anna had told her that if Melody wasn’t a princess, the two of them might never have met. And regardless of how nervous she was about the possibility of Anna finding out all her secrets, the truth is that the mermaid was enjoying that moment with her immensely. So for the first time (in forever), Melody actually was glad to be a princess.

“All right,” she said, answering Anna’s question from before. “You first.”

Anna giggled, and leaned back until her body was floating effortlessly above the water. Melody did the same a moment later. She realized that this put her in a vulnerable position, exposing both her tail and her naked chest. She hoped the darkness of the night would be enough to conceal all of that from her friend, should Anna catch a glimpse of it.

They never let go of each other’s hand. Floating around, the two girls talked about all sorts of topics. They first talked about the stars, then Anna mentioned the aurora — lights in the sky that appeared during the colder months of the year, which Melody had never seen before. Anna let her know she was invited to visit again during the winter in order to see them. They also talked about their homelands, and about their childhoods. Anna told Melody of the way she grew up inside the castle, behind closed doors, and away from her sister Elsa.

Melody noticed how Anna didn’t seem to have any problem talking about her sister’s magic. It wasn’t a secret at all, most people in Arendelle knew of it, and many leaders from other nations had seen it firsthand three years before, when Elsa brought an untimely winter to Arendelle on the day of her coronation ceremony. Anna talked about it with naturality, without a hint of the fear of magic Melody often found in the sailors and townsfolk of Algarvia. So maybe, just maybe, it would be okay for her to reveal her secret? Would Anna think less of the southern princess if she knew Melody was half-mermaid?

“Mel?” Anna asked, and the other woman snapped out of her trance.

“Sorry, did you ask me something?”

“I said you’ve been silent for a while,” said Anna. “Is there something wrong?”

“Oh... I... just zoned out for a bit. Sorry about that. I’m good.”

Anna chuckled. “Okay, then. So hey, I’ve been talking about myself and Elsa for quite some time now, but I kinda wanna hear your stories, too. I... want to learn more about you.”

 _Goodness!_ Melody felt that tug in her chest again. Princess Anna of Arendelle seriously had to stop saying all of that cute stuff, or Melody really might start to get her hopes up. _Calm down_ , she thought.

“All right. What do you want to know?”

“Tell me about your childhood,” said Anna.

Melody took a deep breath, and started telling Anna of some things she’d been through, in the past. The wall around the palace, for instance, built to keep Melody away from the sea. In her retelling of the facts, Melody explained that Ariel had been scared of some bad people that lived beyond the shore — not a lie, technically — and so they built the wall to keep Melody from danger. Not that it could ever stop her. It particularly amused Anna to hear of the little passageway Melody had discovered beneath the wall.

“Hey, when you look at it, we’re kind of similar in that respect, aren’t we?” Anna asked.

Melody furrowed her brow. “What do you mean?”

“Oh, you know... I spent years locked up behind closed doors, and you had that wall to keep you inside. We were both restrained, prevented from going out into the world.”

Melody pondered about that idea for a moment. It made her happy to have something in common with Anna, even if that something was the wretched wall.

“Didn’t Rapunzel mention something like that too?” she asked, remembering a bit of the conversation from the night before.

Anna laughed. “Yup. Blondie grew up literally locked up inside a tower, with nobody for company except a chameleon and a which who pretended to be her mother. I think she’s had it worse than either of us.”

“Oh, yeah, definitely,” Melody agreed. “And what about that nickname? Care to tell me why you call a brunette ‘Blondie’?”

Anna smiled, and began telling the story of Rapunzel’s magic golden hair, and of the way it had changed color and lost all power once Eugene cut it. Or at least, that’s what they say happened, because Rapunzel already had short brown hair by the time Anna first met her.

They kept floating around for a little longer, telling each other stories, until at some point Anna declared she couldn’t take that cold water anymore. Anna let go of Melody’s hand, and the two of them started to swim back to the shore. Melody watched from the water while the other woman put on her clothes on top of her soaked underwear.

“I’m going to my room, to get changed,” Anna stated, “and maybe I’ll come to the library to warm up next to the fireplace. You’re welcome to join me.”

“I’ll pass, this time,” said Melody. It pained her to say no, but she had been swimming for at least an hour, and she knew that somewhere in the castle Ariel was waiting to give her a scolding about it.

“Oh, about our tour of Arendelle, tomorrow, is it okay if I swing by your room at about nine? That way we get plenty of time to see everything.”

Melody grinned. It made her excited to realize this was really going to happen.

“Sure, that’ll be great.”

“Perfect,” said Anna. She finished getting dressed, and turned to look at her friend in the water. “In that case...” Anna began to say, but trailed off. For a moment, nobody said anything. Anna kept staring at Melody, and the girl stared back, visibly confused.

“What’s wrong?” Melody asked.

Anna shook her head, and the smile came back to her face. “It’s nothing,” she said. “I’ll see you tomorrow at nine.” She turned around, and made her way back to the castle.

Melody was left feeling a little unsettled. There had been something decidedly odd about Anna’s behavior, just then, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

Oh, well, she could worry about that later. For now, she needed to recite the counterspell into the pendant, get dressed, then go find Ariel for her scolding. She wasn’t looking forward to that.

And yet, she couldn’t stop smiling either. Melody kept thinking back to the moments she had just spent with Anna in the water. In what little time they spent together, Melody was able to learn a lot about the Arendellian princess, and the two of them seemed to have gotten closer that night. It made Melody feel as if waking on air.

And then there were their plans to go see the city together. The next day couldn’t come fast enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aren't they cute together?


	6. Chapter 6

Anna had special plans for that day, and she wanted to surprise Melody with them.

First on the list: breakfast. The castle kitchen was pretty good for most things, but if they were going into town, then Blodget Bakery was an even better choice. There was no way Anna would allow Melody to return to the south without at least trying Mr. Blodget’s kransekake. So they headed there first.

People bowed to Anna as she passed them by. Melody was used to that: it was exactly how the southerner was treated in both Algarvia _and_ Atlantica. She’s never liked all that attention, but had grown accustomed to it through the years. In Arendelle, however, nobody knew her, and it was refreshing not to be the center of attention for once.

As soon as they walked into the bakery, they were greeted by a fifteen-year-old girl in an apron. Her auburn hair had been neatly tied into a milkmaid braid. Anna smiled. She’d been the one who taught the girl how to do her hair that way.

“Your Highness!” exclaimed the girl, giddily.

“Hello, Evelyn,” said Anna. “Are you alone, today? Where’s Mr. and Mrs. Blodget?”

“Down at the park,” the girl replied. “They’re setting up things for the fair.”

Anna nodded. “I figured that might be it. Do you have a table for two?”

Evelyn grinned. “For the future Queen of Arendelle? Always. Come with me.”

The girl left the counter, and started walking to the back of the store. Anna motioned for Melody to follow, and she did so, uncertainly. That conversation right then had been entirely in Arendellian, so Melody had no idea what was going on.

As they walked, the teenage girl whispered furtively to the Princess-Regent of Arendelle.

“Who’s your guest?” she asked. Evelyn kept stealing glances at Melody, who followed them close behind. “New girlfriend?”

Anna laughed. “I wish. No, just a friend from another kingdom.”

Evelyn opened a door at the back of the shop, revealing a veranda with a few tables. Blodget Bakery sat on top of a hill which oversaw the fjord, and the view from that veranda was quite scenic. The young girl set up the table for her customers, and the two women sat down, facing each other.

“Thank you,” said Melody, addressing the attendant. Who, in turn, seemed confused for a moment. _Ah_ , thought Melody, _I don’t think she speaks English_.

“What will you have today?” the girl asked Anna, in Arendellian.

“Can you bring me some of my favorites? I’ll be sharing them with my guest, we’re going for a taste-test,” Anna winked, and the girl smirked.

“Gotcha,” she said, before turning to walk back into the store.

Anna saw the look of curiosity on Melody’s face, and she found it irresistibly cute.

“What did you tell her?” asked the southern princess.

“You’ll see,” said Anna, cheerily. “Say, Mel, are you allergic to any foods?” Melody shook her head negatively. The smile on Anna’s face widened. “Perfect.” She got up from her seat, and walked around the table, stopping behind Melody’s chair. Then she retrieved a scarf from her purse, and wrapped it around the other woman’s head, covering her eyes. She leaned into her ear and said softly: “Let’s play a game. I ordered some pastries, try to guess what’s in each of them.”

Melody giggled. “All right, then.”

With Melody still blindfolded, the two of them chatted to pass the time until their order arrived. It didn’t take long until Evelyn came back with several small portions of sweets in small dishes and bowls, as well as a jug of water and glasses.

“What a lovely smell,” said Melody. “I don’t know what you ordered, Anna, but if it tastes as good as it smells, I want a dozen.”

Anna laughed. She moved her chair to the side of the table, closer to where Melody was sitting. Then she sliced a piece off the first pastry, and held it on a fork for Melody to eat. “Here you go, silly. Open up.”

Melody accepted the food, happily. She munched on it. It was... sweet... with a hint of... oh, she knew what this was.

“Apples,” she announced. “With cinnamon.”

“Very good,” Anna praised. “But that was an easy one. How about this now?”

Anna offered her friend a glass of water, before repeating the earlier procedure with the second pastry. This one wasn’t as easy as the first to figure out, but Melody was able to make an educated guess.

“Vanilla and almonds, I think,” is what she said. “This is the one with that lovely smell, it’s pretty tasty.”

Anna smiled. “You’re good at this, Mel. Okay, then, so here’s a challenge.”

Melody took another sip of water, and opened her mouth to be fed the next bite.

Now, however, Melody couldn’t guess. The taste was completely foreign to her. It was a sort of cream filled waffle-like cookie, but the flavor of the filling wasn’t anything she was used to eating.

“I give up,” Melody admitted. “I have no idea what this is.”

“I figured you wouldn’t know,” said Anna. “It’s krumkake with multekrem. It’s made with cloudberries, you probably don’t have those where you’re from. Ready for the next one?”

“Hit me,” said Melody.

“Ok, so... these three you’ve eaten just now are traditional Arendellian pastries. This next one is a recipe Blondie brought me from Corona, with a few changes suggested by yours truly. I call it the _krumsakringlekakke_. See if you like it.”

Melody allowed Anna to feed her the next recipe. This one was... bitter, but sweet, and it melted in the mouth. It had a creamy consistency to it, but the taste was well defined, and easy to figure out.

“A chocolate tart,” Melody declared, happily. “It’s delicious, really. Is there coffee in it?”

“There is, yes,” Anna giggled. “I’m really glad you like it.” She reached behind Melody’s head for the knot in the blindfold, and undid it deftly. The scarf fell on Mel’s lap. She stared for a moment at the dishes in front of her, then locked eyes with the woman sitting next to her, smiles on both their faces.

Anna reached for Melody’s face, and touched the side of her mouth, softly, before bringing her fingers back to her own mouth. She licked the tip of her index finger. Melody stared, wide-eyed.

“You had chocolate on your cheek,” Anna explained, smile unwavering.

Melody averted her eyes, embarrassed. _Seriously, can this girl get any cuter?_ thought Anna.

They finished breakfast a while later, and Anna excitedly dragged Melody over to the next destination on her list. They visited the fountain, the rose garden, the public library — which Anna loved and Melody didn’t particularly care for — and finally...

Anna couldn’t contain her excitement anymore. She was practically skipping as she led Melody around a corner into the city park. Melody’s jaw dropped.

“Wow,” said the southern princess.

It was a festival.

There were striped tents everywhere. Many of the townsfolk had come together to make it happen, as they did every year, on the first week of fall. The harvest festival lasted three days, and gathered artists and merchants from all of the neighboring kingdoms. It was Anna’s favorite festival of the year.

“Is this real?” Melody asked, wide-eyed. She immediately ran over to where a duo of street performers were juggling with fire, and watched, entranced. Anna stood by her side, and found that watching Melody’s reactions was even more fun than the actual performance.

The jugglers finished their act, and Anna tipped them a gold coin, to the awe of the performers. The Princess-Regent of Arendelle was known to be generous, and just then she was thinking that the smile on Melody’s face was worth more than any money in the world.

Melody took Anna’s hand, and pulled her over to where a lady was sitting doing speed paintings. A sign informed all who would be interested that she did portraits for five-copper each. The two of them stared as the painter worked on a portrait of a young boy with his dog.

“Wanna get one?” Anna whispered.

Melody beamed. “Can I?” she asked, excitedly. Anna felt her heart melting. She paid the painter the five copper, and stood by as Melody sat down before the artist.

“Any preferences?” the painter asked, and suddenly an idea crossed Anna’s mind. She leaned over, and whispered something to the painter. It really wasn’t necessary to whisper, since Melody didn’t speak Arendellian, but doing so made Melody twitch with curiosity, and Anna simply loved to tease her that way.

The painter lady nodded, and started working.

“What did you tell her?” Melody asked.

“It’s a surprise,” said Anna, winking.

The whole thing took about twenty minutes. Posing for a portrait was boring, Melody realized, but at least she was allowed to chat with Anna while she waited.

“It’s done,” announced the painter lady, resting her pallet and brush on the suitcase nearby.

“Come look,” said Anna, motioning Melody over.

As soon as Melody saw the painting, she burst out laughing.

Anna had asked for Melody to be painted as a pirate.

“If I remember right,” said Anna, “a few days ago you said you wish you were born a pirate, didn’t you?”

“Did too,” Melody admitted, laughing. “Thanks, Anna, this is awesome.”

It was about then that Anna noticed a familiar boy crying next to the candy apple stand. “I’ll be right back,” she told Melody, before walking up to the boy. “Hey, hey, what’s wrong, Anders?” she asked.

The boy looked up at her, with reddish tear-filled eyes. “Norm’s missing,” he announced.

“Norm?” Anna inquired. She didn’t know anyone with that name in Arendelle.

“My pig!” the boy explained, bursting into tears again.

Anna crouched beside him. “Well, want me to help you find him?”

“No!” the boy protested. “I want Queen Elsa to help me find him!”

“Elsa, huh?” Anna grunted.

Why is it that everyone liked Elsa more than her? Okay, she gets it, Elsa was reliable, kind, and she did rule the kingdom for three years, not to mention that magical ice powers are pretty popular among kids, but _still_! Anna could be reliable too. She smirked.

“Well, I’m surprised you don’t know this, Anders, but I’m the kingdom’s top—” Anna had to stop talking, because just then she caught sight of a piglet perched atop a cart filled with apples, stuffing his face. “Pig!!” she shouted, and started dashing toward Norm. “Halt, you swine!” she commanded. In retrospect, she should not have said anything, because the little oinker realized it was about to be hunt down, and scampered away, still with an apple in his mouth.

Anna tripped over the cart of apples, toppling it over. “I’m sorry!” she told the grocer. “I’ll replace the appl— OH!” Not looking where she was going, Anna stumbled upon a table full of neatly arranged strawberry pies. She slid over the table, knocking the pies down, and eventually falling on top of them, too. Mr. and Mrs. Blodget stared at the disaster with condolent smiles. Not a festival went by without Princess Anna causing a disaster of some sort.

“Oh dear!” Anna exclaimed, staring at the mess she’d just made. “I’ll help you bake more,” she told the Blodgets, who promptly refused. Just like every other cook in Arendelle, they wanted to make sure Anna stayed as far away from their kitchen as possible.

Meanwhile, a few stalls over, a couple of street artists were teaching people how to walk on stilts. Melody had lied about having done it before so that she could be allowed on the bigger stilts. She took a few tentative steps forward, and immediately realized her mistake. She had absolutely no idea how to do that thing. She continued to step forward, wondering how the heck she’d manage to stop and get out of that thing.

And then she heard a voice.

“Mel?!” Anna called, from somewhere below her. Melody looked down, and found the Arendellian princess clutching to one of the stilt legs, swinging along with each step. “What are you doing up there?” Anna asked.

“I was trying to learn how to do this,” Melody explained. “But I have no idea how to stop.”

Anna’s peripheral vision caught sight of Norm, idling about near one of the tents. _I got you now, pig!_ thought the redhead. She pointed at it, and shouted: “Mel! Follow that pig!”

“I’ll try,” said Melody, who wasn’t in much control of where she was going.

They started chasing the pig down one of the aisles between food stalls, until Melody stumbled upon the acrobats’ tent. The stilts tumbled forward, and she fell on — and then through — the tent canvas. Fortunately, she landed on a safety net, inside.

Anna burst into the tent, worried. “Are you all right?!” she asked.

“I think so,” said Melody, who was still recovering from the shock.

They heard an oink, and the two girls turned their heads to see Norm staring at them mockingly from the entrance of the tent.

Fire burned in Anna’s eyes. “You’re dead, pig!” she announced, before dashing toward the swine. Melody followed close behind. “I’ll catch you...” said Anna as she ran, panting every few words, “...and then... I’ll make... _pork cutlets_! Do you... hear me, pig?!”

Melody realized the pig was running toward one of the aisles between tents, and an idea occurred to her. Instead of following Anna, she walked around the tents to the other side of the aisle.

Finally, the pig stopped running, once it realized it was surrounded. Melody and Anna advanced toward it from opposite sides, slowly.

“On three...” said Melody. “One... two... THREE!”

The two women plunged forward, reaching for the pig, but somehow Norm managed to dodge them both, and they ended up clashing onto each other. Their heads bumped together and they fell on their backs, yelping from the shock and the pain.

“Owww...” Anna moaned. She stood up, while massaging her head, just in time to see the pig walking back to its owner.

“Norm!” the boy cried. “You came back!”

Norm the pig jumped up and down around the boy Anders. Anna stared in disbelief.

“I hate that pig,” she muttered.


	7. Chapter 7

Half-an-hour later, the two girls were back in the castle, walking through the corridors and laughing at the ridiculous situation they’d just been in. Anna swung open a door, stepped inside, but froze, surprised to find someone already inside that room.

“Elsa?” she asked. The blonde smiled at her, and Anna relaxed. She walked into the room, followed by Melody. “You didn’t tell me you were coming back.”

“I had to drop by for a quick visit,” she explained. Elsa’s eyebrows shot up, noticing that both women were covered in purple stains. “What happened to you?”

“Pig,” said Anna.

“Pie,” said Melody.

They exchanged glances, stifling laughs. “Well, not a pig pie,” Anna explained. “Pig _and_ pie.”

“And who might you be?” said Elsa, giving Melody a once-over.

“Sorry, sorry, I forgot the introductions,” said Anna. “Sis, this is Mel... I mean, Princess Melody of Algarvia. You know, King Eric’s daughter. Aaaand, Mel, this is my sister Elsa.”

“I’m honored, your Highness,” said Melody, curtsying. Some strawberry pie plopped from her head to the floor.

“Likewise,” said Elsa, trying not to laugh.

Anna walked over to the wardrobe, and started fumbling with the clothes inside. “Where’s my rose dress,” she asked.

“Still recovering from the last time you wore it,” Elsa replied. A week before, during Elsa’s last trip to Arendelle, she had sent that dress for repairs with Margaret, a skilled seamstress from the city which was quite likely the only person capable of dealing with Anna-levels of damage.

“Right, sorry,” said Anna, throwing stuff around. “Say, Melody, can I lend you one of my dresses? I think that this green one I wore on my birthday last year would look just _perfect_ on you.”

“Oh, no, Anna, that won’t be necessary.”

“I know,” said Anna. “I’m not asking ‘cause it’s necessary, Mel. I’m asking ‘cause it’ll be fun. Elsa never does these things with me. Now where did I put those shoes?”

Mixed noises came from inside the wardrobe as Anna navigated the rows of clothes inside. Melody and Elsa exchanged apprehensive glances.

“Is she always this pushy?” the younger girl whispered.

Elsa stifled a laugh. “Pretty much, yes,” she confirmed.

Anna emerged from the wardrobe, looking annoyed.

“Hey, are you talking about me, back there?”

“Who, me?” Elsa placed a hand over her chest, feigning innocence. “Never would I ever, sis.”

Anna glared at her.

“Yeah, right,” she scorned. “You better not tell her any embarrassing stories, d’ya hear?”

The redhead picked up a pile of clothes, strode up to Melody, grabbed the girl’s arm and dragged her out of the room.

“Tell me those stories later!” Melody asked as she was towed through the door.

“Don’t you dare, Elsa!” said Anna from outside, making her sister laugh.

Anna and Melody each went their separate ways, so that they could bathe and get dressed. Melody was inside the guest’s bedroom, drying her hair when her eyes fell on the dress Anna had picked for her: It was a sleeveless, knee-length deep green dress with intricately embroidered sunflowers, birds and tree branches. Compared to the stuffy party dressed Ariel often forced Melody to wear, this one looked much simpler, and more comfortable. It also exposed significantly more skin. Melody supposed her mother hadn’t kept up with the times.

Truth be told, though, Melody hated dresses. For that reason, she didn’t own a single such piece that she’d chosen for herself. In the castle, back home, she’d be hard-pressed to wear a dress at any time except formal occasions, such as balls. Unfortunately, visiting an allied kingdom such as Arendelle counted as one of those formal occasions. More than once did she think of throwing the suitcase with dresses overboard during the ship journey there, but she never took this idea far, because: 1) she didn’t dare; and 2) the creatures of the sea would be more than willing to return Melody’s suitcase to her.

But Anna’s dress... well, that was a different matter.

It did look quite pretty, and it was impossible for her not to imagine how good her Arendellian friend must look when she wore it. And on top of that, Anna herself had picked this dress for Melody, because she thought it would suit her. This simple fact made Melody rather happy. She decided to try it on.

“How bad can it be?” she asked herself, while dressing.

That dress really did fit her, in the end. It accentuated her curves without giving too much away, and was so different from her own dresses that for a moment Melody felt like a different person altogether. She twirled in front of the mirror, and tried looking at herself from other angles. Even if dresses as a whole weren’t exactly to her taste, she had to admit this one was a very beautiful thing.

Melody was just about to start changing out of it, when she heard a knock on the door.

“Come in,” she said.

The door swung open, and two women walked into her room while chatting to each other. They stopped walking when they looked ahead and saw Melody.

Anna and Rapunzel both gaped.

“Is it weird?” Melody asked, nervously.

“Whoa...” said Rapunzel, wide-eyed. Anna still couldn’t bring herself to say anything.

Melody frowned. “It’s weird, I knew it. I’m gonna take it off,” she reached for her regular yellow dress on top of the bed.

“You’re beautiful,” Anna declared, stopping a very embarrassed Melody dead in her tracks. Then Anna realized what she’d said, and her cheeks turned beet-red. “I... I mean, the dress... it looks... pretty good in you. In fact it’s even better than I had imagined it.”

Rapunzel stared between a dumbstruck Anna and a self-conscious Melody, and giggled. “You look fantastic, Mel. Know what... Anna and I will be waiting for you outside, while you finish getting ready,” she said, before towing Anna out of the room.

Once the door was closed, Anna leaned against the wall.

“That... was weird...” she whispered.

“I think she looked pretty cute, no?” Rapunzel teased.

“She _is_ cute,” said Anna. “It’s just... dammit, Blondie, she’s wearing my dress!” she lowered her voice further, and whispered with urgency: “It’s like the two of us were dating!”

“Is that why you lent it to her?” Rapunzel asked, amused. “You perv.”

“What?! No!” Anna protested. “I just thought it would look good on her. And I was right! I just didn’t expect I’d get so...”

“Weirded out?” Rapunzel guessed. “Or... aroused?”

Anna winced. “A bit of both?”

Rapunzel burst out laughing.

“It’s not funny!” Anna protested.

“Of course it is,” said Rapunzel, who found that whole situation delightfully funny. “Come on, Anna, be honest with me here, for a moment. Do you like Melody?”

Anna’s face turned red once again. “I... maybe...” she admitted. Then she let out a sigh. “Yes, I may have a bit of a crush on her... and I know what you’re going to say, Blondie, but you don’t have to worry. I’m not gonna go for her. I’ve learned my lesson already.”

Rapunzel winced. She knew it was a good thing Anna realized she had to stop hitting on virtual strangers... it’s just that she seemed to have chosen the worst possible time to come to that conclusion.

“Actually,” said the brunette, “I think this time you should give it a go.”

Anna furrowed her brow, and stared at her friend, astonished. “Come again?”

“I said...” Rapunzel carefully measured her words, so as not to give away the secret Melody had confided her. “...that I think you should try to ask Melody out. You know, if ever the mood is right, and the opportunity arises.”

Anna shook her head. “All right, who are you, and what have you done to the real Blondie?”

Rapunzel chuckled. “Just trust me on this, okay?”

The bedroom door opened, and Melody walked out of it. She was wearing her regular yellow dress, this time. The southern princess handed the green dress back to Anna.

“Oh, you can keep it,” said Anna, before she could stop herself.

“Thanks,” said Melody, sounding a little saddened. “It’s really very pretty. But I don’t think it’s for me, after all. Dresses aren’t really my thing.”

That surprised Rapunzel, who’d only ever seen Melody in dresses so far.

“Why do you wear them, then?” she asked.

Melody frowned. “Mom makes me,” she confessed. “Because princesses are supposed to dress like this or whatever. I mean, I get it, it’s not like mom was the one who made these stupid etiquette rules, and I suppose everyone would look at me weird if I decided to show up in pants at some party.”

Rapunzel’s eyes gleamed.

“I have an idea.”


	8. Chapter 8

“So, tonight, right after dinner, I want you two to come to the castle garden. You know, that one with the big willow tree. I’ll have a surprise waiting for you. Oh, and Melody, you absolutely must come in clothes you feel comfortable in. I forbid you from wearing a dress, you hear?”

Those had been Rapunzel’s exact words, earlier that day.

Melody dug around inside her suitcase, trying to find the set of comfortable clothes she knew she’d smuggled there. She liked having some of her usual clothes with her at all times, even if the chances of her ever getting to wear it during a visit to another country were pretty much close to zero.

There they were. Baggy cotton pants and an over-sized long-sleeved shirt. Melody changed into them, and stared at herself in the mirror.

Well, these definitely weren’t as pretty as Anna’s green dress. On the other hand, wearing these somewhere other than home felt liberating. _Back off, corsets, you hideous beasts!_ Melody added a scarf and a sleeveless leather jacket — one she’d won in a bet against one of her father’s sailors — and completed the look by wearing plain leather sandals, rather than heels. There. She was ready.

Melody peeked outside her room, making sure Ariel wasn’t around. The castle servants shot her a few curious glances as Melody made her way down the stairs, past the kitchen, and out through a service door, into the castle gardens.

Anna was already there, waiting for her. She was wearing a long white dress with a waist-length straw-colored jacket, and it all made her look absolutely lovely.

“Well, look at you, gorgeous,” said Anna, smiling, as Melody approached her.

“You’re the gorgeous one,” Melody retorted. “I’m just dorky.”

“That’s not true,” said the Arendellian. “Those clothes really suit you, y’know. You look like a pirate. A sexy pirate.”

Melody averted her eyes. “Oh, hush,” she said, grinning. Then she cleared her throat. “So... what are we here for?”

Anna shrugged. “I don’t know. Blondie won’t tell, she says it’s a surprise.”

The two women walked down to the bench under the willow tree, and sat down side-by-side. Silence settled between them. Anna kept stealing glances at Melody. She thought Mel looked really dashing in those clothes. They suited her so much more than any fancy dress. And she started wondering whether there would be a way to convince Ariel that it was acceptable for her daughter to wear those clothes.

“So, um... about this morning...” Melody began to say. It made Anna snap out of her trance.

“Right!” said the Princess Regent. “I’m really sorry about that thing with the pig. That was a disaster.”

“Oh, no, no!” Melody interjected. “I mean, yes, it was a disaster, but I... kinda had fun, you know?” she smiled sheepishly at Anna. “Thanks for taking me on a tour of Arendelle. I loved all of it.”

“Anytime,” said Anna, delighted.

They stared into each other’s eyes. Was it just a coincidence that green was Anna’s favorite color? It was the color of spring, and hope. And it was also... the color of the eyes of this girl Anna was in love with. She leaned closer, to take a better look.

Melody knew what was about to happen, or at very least, she had some idea. And yet, she could hardly believe it. In these past few days, she had dreamed of kissing Anna countless times. But she had never thought she’d ever get a chance to. Until now. As Anna’s face drew closer to hers, Melody’s heartbeat hastened. And the mood was so right, too. Melody closed her eyes, waiting for the kiss...

...and yet, the kiss didn’t come.

When she opened her eyes again, she found Anna was back to staring at the waters of the fjord. _What happened? Why did she stop?_

“Hey, so maybe we should—” Anna started to say, but was interrupted when Melody called her name.

“Anna?”

The redhead turned her head to look at her friend.

And then... she was kissed.

Melody knew it was a risk she was taking, but she decided to take it, anyway. If all they had between them was to end the next day, during Anna’s coronation... if Melody was to return to Algarvia with nothing but the memory of a short-lived friendship with Anna, well... the southern princess thought this particular risk was one worth taking.

After the initial shock, Anna relaxed, and started kissing Melody back. Their lips played with each other’s. Anna touched Melody’s face, finding it hard to believe this was really happening. Then Melody started smiling into the kiss, and that made Anna smile as well.

“Er-hem.”

The voice had come from somewhere beside them. The two women backed away from each other, hurriedly, and turned to look.

Rapunzel was standing near the water’s edge, grinning devilishly. A short distance away from there, Merida was staring at them from inside a sailboat.

“Oh, Blondie...” said Anna, hesitantly. “And Mer too... shit, this is awkward.”

Beside her, Melody was buried her face in her hands, mortified.

Rapunzel laughed. “Come on, Anna, it’s not like I’ve never seen you kissing a girl before. And Mel, I’m glad your feelings are requited.”

Anna stared repeatedly between Melody and Rapunzel, befuddled.

“You knew?” she asked Rapunzel, who nodded.

“Mel told me she liked you, a while ago.”

Anna gave Melody an inquiring look, and saw the southerner reply with a small nod.

“Anyway,” said Rapunzel, “shall we go now? To my surprise?”


	9. Chapter 9

Rapunzel’s surprise turned out to be a party inside her ship. Eugene was there, and so were Jasmine, Aladdin and Rajah. The usually mighty and imposing tiger looked as frightened as a cat in a bathtub. Jasmine explained that Rajah really hated being aboard any ships. The only reason he’d come along was because his owner was there.

Aladdin and Eugene helped the girls come aboard.

“Hey girls,” Jasmine called. “Whoa, Melody, you look great! Going for the handsome pirate look?”

Anna smirked, and playfully elbowed the embarrassed girl beside her. “See? I told you so,” she told Melody.

Melody looked around. She knew everyone there, except for one person. A tall, burly blond man. He was coming over to greet her.

“So... you’re Melody, right? I’ve... heard of you.”

Anna cleared her throat. “Let me introduce you guys,” she said. “Kristoff, this is Princess Melody of Algarvia. Mel, this is Kristoff Bjorgman, of... nowhere in particular,” she grinned while saying that, earning herself a glare from the mountain man. “He’s a personal friend,” she added.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” said Melody. She attempted a curtsy, out of habit, but stopped herself halfway when her hands failed to meet the skirt of a dress. “Wait, this doesn’t work with pants,” she remarked, making Anna and Rapunzel both laugh. “Can I bow instead?” she asked.

“Of course you can, honey,” said Anna, placing one hand on Melody’s upper arm, for reassurance. Melody nodded, and attempted a bow for the first time in her life. Kristoff returned the gesture with a bow of his own.

“Hey, Mel, come over here!” Jasmine shouted from across the deck. “You too, Blondie!”

“Coming!” said Melody, letting go of Anna’s hand.

Anna watched with a smile as Melody walked away. Once they were alone, Kristoff turned to Anna, and whispered?

“So... _‘honey’_ , was it? When did that happen?”

Anna giggled, and crossed her arms. “It’s not official yet,” she explained. “She, umm... she kissed me.”

Kristoff gaped. “ _She_ kissed _you_? Not the other way around?”

“Aren’t I lucky?” said Anna, beaming.

“Wow,” said the mountain man, impressed. “Congratulations, Anna.”

Rapunzel dashed over to them, gestured for Anna to keep quiet, and pulled the girl over to the other side of the deck. Over there, Melody and Jasmine were crouched behind the ship’s boarding. Rapunzel pulled Anna’s arm for her to crouch as well.

“What are we watching?” Anna asked.

She could see Merida walking down the pier. She was apparently going to meet up with a person who was standing on the shore. That person was... familiar.

“Is that Elsa?” she asked, surprised.

“I invited her here tonight,” Rapunzel explained, whispering.

“What?! Really?!” Anna exclaimed.

Rapunzel shushed her. “Of course I did. We hardly ever get the opportunity of hanging out with your sister, Ann. She always used to be busy dealing with foreign trade deals and other queenly affairs.”

“Why, that’s true,” Jasmine observed, amused. “You know, that does make me wonder... aren’t you supposed to be handling those nowadays, Anna?” She smirked. “But But I don’t often see you working your ass off, like Elsa used to. You haven’t been slacking off on your duties, have you?”

“ _Of course_ not!” Anna protested. “I’m... umm... delegating.”

Jasmine snorted. “Slave driver.”

That irritated Anna. “Hey, everyone’s getting paid fairly for their work, okay?!”

“Shush, you two!” said Rapunzel, annoyed. “I’m trying to hear.”

The four of them fell silent. Down at the shore, Merida and Elsa were talking to each other. They were just a bit too far away for Rapunzel and the other to make out what was being said.

“It’s useless,” said Jasmine, leaning back against the wooden boards.

“Er, so why are we spying on Merida and Elsa, everyone?” Melody asked, confused.

“Doesn’t she know?” Jasmine asked Anna, who shrugged.

“Mer has a crush on Elsa,” Rapunzel explained. She was the only one still trying to listen in on their friends.

“A crush?” said Jasmine, chuckling. “More like a landslide.”

It surprised Melody. “Seriously?” she asked, baffled.

“It’s unrequited,” said Anna, sounding a little saddened. “Sis has never shown romantic interest in anyone, as far as I know. And it’s such drama, too. They met on Elsa’s fifteenth birthday, and Mer’s been fawning over her ever since. Do you know how long that’s been?” she asked Melody, who shrugged. “Nine years,” Anna declared. “Nine whole years and she still hasn’t given up. I keep telling Mer that sis has no interest in romance, but does she ever listen?”

“They’re coming!” Rapunzel whispered. “Play it cool, everyone!”

The four of them dashed off to other parts of the ship, and started to pretend that they had been doing anything other than spy on Merida and her crush. Melody thought this was just as suspicious as straight-up admitting everything, but they were fortunately saved when Eugene emerged from below decks carrying two small barrels under his arms. “Drinks, everyone!” he announced. “I have wine and ale, and Aladdin’s coming up with non-alcoholics for those who prefer that.”

“Sweet!” Anna exclaimed, smiling. “Melody, do you drink?”

“Occasionally,” the southern princess replied. “But... not much. Things go wrong if I drink too much.”

Anna chuckled. “I feel you, Mel,” she declared. “I have to say I do enjoy some wine, myself, but please don’t feel pressured to accompany me on that, okay? Half of us here don’t drink alcohol, anyway.”

Melody nodded, and started following Anna to where Eugene was serving their guests some drinks.

Fifteen minutes later, the whole group was gathered in a circle on the deck. Rapunzel and Eugene had brought cushions and carpets to spread around the place, and Kristoff was playing songs on the lute, all of which made for quite an enjoyable atmosphere. They drank, ate pastries (from Blodget Bakery, no less), and told each other stories. It was nice, Melody realized.

Merida’s crush on Elsa couldn’t be more obvious. The redhead kept stealing glances at her Arendellian friend. She smiled every time Elsa looked at her, and paid close attention whenever Elsa spoke. It raised a lot of questions. Had this really been going on for nine years? Surely Elsa couldn’t be _that_ oblivious so as not to notice it, right? But Elsa herself was a little hard to comprehend. She treated everyone in the group as a friend, and Merida herself as a close friend, but there was no telling what was going on in the Snow Queen’s head.

“Oh, by the way... Melody, wasn’t it?” Elsa asked Melody, who nodded. “I really like your outfit tonight. It suits you.”

Melody’s joy at being complimented on her taste in clothes lasted only a second. Her eyes fell on Merida, and the Scottish woman had a look of both sadness and hurt on her face. Melody could tell Elsa didn’t compliment Merida on her looks all that often.

Rapunzel noticed what was happening, and intervened. She tapped the side of her glass.

“Hey, let me propose a toast,” said the brunette, raising the glass of wine. “Anna,” she called, “it’s been three years since we first met, hasn’t it? Or is that four? I don’t know, I’m drunk, I can’t do math when I’m drunk.” The others laughed. “It’s been years. An unspecified amount thereof. Now, I remember when I first came to Arendelle. You... did leave a strong first impression.” There was another round of laughs.

Anna blushed, remembering the kiss. It had happened at a party in the castle, a few days after Elsa’s coronation. And it had happened in front of all of their guests. Rapunzel laughed it off afterward, but Anna remembered feeling mortified.

“Anyway,” Rapunzel continued, “what I’m trying to say is... we became friends fast. Best friends, even. And those three-slash-four years we’ve spent together, well, that all has been a lot of fun. And that’s not just me speaking, I think all of us here can agree that you’re a great person, and a great friend.” There were nods and smiled going around the group. “Safe to say that none of us would be here, right now, if it wasn’t for you. So, here’s to Anna, and may she be the best Queen that Arendelle has ever had... Oh, no offense, Elsa,” she added, and the group laughed.

“None taken,” said the blonde. She raised her glass, and the others followed.

“To Anna,” said Kristoff, and everyone repeated that.

Rapunzel sipped her drink, refilled the glass, and raised it once again.

“And another toast to Anna’s new girlfriend.”

Everyone else was surprised by that declaration, on various levels, including Anna herself.

“Blondie!!” Anna half-whispered-half-shouted to her friend, furious. “It’s not official yet!”

“Then let’s make it official,” said Melody.

The whole group fell silent. All eyes were on Melody and Anna who were sitting side-by-side. Anna was gaping at the southern princess, astounded. Melody responded by smiling gently at her. Truth be told, Melody was usually terrible at social situations, and particularly bad when those situations involved a love interest. She had never expected herself to act so bold and forward. But at that moment, the brunette felt really confident, and acted on instinct. She took one of Anna’s hands in hers, and the two women locked eyes.

“Anna,” Melody began to say, “those last few days we spent together were pretty much the best I ever had. It’s been so much fun getting to know you, and spending time together. You’ve made me fall for you. And, right now, nothing would make me happier than to have you as my girlfriend. So... what do you say? Will you take me?”

Silence. Anna tried to speak, but all she managed to do was mutter a few stammered and incomprehensible words. Even Elsa was surprised: she’d never seen her sister at such a loss for words, before.

“I think you broke her, Mel,” said Jasmine, and everyone else started laughing, even Melody herself. Anna blushed fiercely, and nodded.

“I’d love to,” said the Arendellian princess.

Melody grinned, overjoyed. She ran her fingers through Anna’s red hair, and leaned in for their second-ever kiss.

“Guys, I think I’m gonna cry,” said Kristoff, causing yet another round of laughter.

“No more alcohol for you,” said Jasmine, taking the glass of ale from his hand.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (not proof-read yet, forgive me for any mistakes)

Anna’s coronation was beautiful. Melody sat in the first row of the church along with the usual crew: Rapunzel, Eugene, Merida, Jasmine and Aladdin. As for Kristoff, Olaf and Sven, they were waiting outside, along with a grouchy Rajah. The reindeer, the snowman and the tiger had all been banned from the ceremony by a very uptight bishop, one who considered it disrespectful to have animals in the building, let alone a… a magical snowman thing, I mean what _was_ that? He had spent a long time furiously leafing through his bible, trying to find out what God’s position on enchanted snowmen was, before Kristoff intervened and said it would just be better if they all waited outside. This whole situation greatly annoyed Anna, but Kristoff just shrugged it off, saying fancy celebrations weren’t his style anyway.

A chorus of Arendelle’s best singers performed some beautiful acapella songs. Anna and Melody kept exchanging glances during the ceremony, both elated. Melody nearly squeaked with joy when the bishop placed the crown on Anna’s head. Everyone stood up as the bishop intoned the traditional coronation speech in Latin and proclaimed:

“Queen Anna of Arendelle.”

The crowd repeated those words, and started cheering on her. Anna was beaming.

Near the very back of the church, another visitor had just arrived, barely in time to catch the end of the bishop’s speech. Nobody noticed her there.

Suddenly, Anna was overwhelmed by hugs. First from Rapunzel, then Merida and Jasmine. Melody waited. She thought that if she tried to hug Anna then, she might not be able to hold back from kissing her, and it didn’t look like a great idea to do that it in front of an unsuspecting crowd, inside a catholic church, under the judgmental gaze of a conservative bishop.

“Hey, can you all wait for a bit?” Anna asked, trying to back away from the hugs. “I have to go meet my subjects outside, and then we’re headed to the main square to inaugurate a new statue of my parents. May I see you there?”

“Sure thing, _my queen,_ ” said Rapunzel, with a curtsy.

Anna laughed, then walked hurriedly down the aisle until she was outside.

Melody stared while she went, with a silly smile on her lips. Rapunzel elbowed her playfully. “Quit fawning,” she said. Melody just sneered.

“Oh, let her be, Blondie,” said Jasmine. “Her girlfriend just became a Queen, she’s allowed to fawn. Not like either of us are ever going to know what that feels like.”

“You can still ditch those two and go for some princes,” said Melody, snarky, because she knew Eugene and Aladdin were listening. “Some of these guests are pretty cute.”

“Ex _cuse_ me?” said Eugene, raising an eyebrow.

Merida decided to join in. “Or princesses, even,” she said, smirking devilishly. “You have a lot of options, you don’t have to settle.”

“Wait, what?!” Aladdin protested, surprised.

“Oh, you know what, I guess you’re right, Mel,” said Jasmine, playing along. She nudged Rapunzel. “What do ya say, Blondie, think I have a shot with Anna?”

Melody scoffed. “Paws off my girl, please!” she exclaimed.

“Or Elsa, maybe?” Jas smirked, shooting a challenging glance at Merida, whose face was now turning as red as her hair. The joke had totally backfired.

Aladdin cleared his throat. “Jasmine, is there something you wish to talk to me about?”

The girl laughed heartily. “Don’t worry, honey, I’m just joking around. Besides, Anna’s taken, and I don’t really fancy an arrow on my back, so it’s not like I’m going after Elsa either. I love you, babe.”

Jasmine gave her husband a quick peck on the lips. Aladdin laughed, but he was obviously still nervous. Melody felt for the poor guy, Jasmine’s pranks were a bit on the mean side.

“In any case,” said Jas, “I should probably go check on Rajah, make sure he hasn’t tried to eat anyone. I’ll see you girls later at dinner.”

“You mean you’re not going to the main square? To see the new statue?”

Jas frowned. “I think I’ll pass. I can go see it another time, it’s not like it’s just gonna up and start walking, right?”

“Oh, I can see that happening,” Merida countered. “It’s not totally unheard of. I mean, Olaf is a snowman.”

Jasmine chuckled. “Point taken.”

—

Anna’s coronation ended up being the busiest day of her life. Between all of the celebratory functions and the speeches she had to give both her subjects and her guests, she was practically running all over the place.

In a sense, not much would change after this. She had already been ruling Arendelle as a Princess-Regent, so her duties would remain unaltered. The only thing that really changed was that now everyone was referring to her as “your majesty”, which was a little hard for the girl to get used to. There was also some finality to it: as a Princess-Regent, there was always the possibility — albeit remote — that Elsa would one day come back to Arendelle and reclaim the throne. But this was gone now. Anna would be Queen of Arendelle for the rest of her days, whether she liked it or not.

She had barely any time that day to think about what this meant for her love life. For Melody. They hadn’t even been together for 24 hours, yet the new Queen was already starting to fret over their future as a couple. At some point, as she helped handle the preparations for dinner and received congratulations from several of her peers, Anna’s only wish was that this night could end so she could be together with her girlfriend.

Evening dinner started. Somehow there seemed to be even more guests in the dining room than the previous days. Anna had heard about a couple of last minute guests arriving, but she had been too busy to pay that much mind. The guests asked Anna for a speech, which she delivered with a smile on her face. The people beside her on the table were Arendelle’s most important allies, the noblesse from Russia, Germany and Sweden. Anna wished that Melody could be there with her, instead, but that would be shocking and unorthodox. Their relationship wasn’t even public yet. One step at a time.

After dinner, most guests were escorted to the ballroom, where a party was being held to celebrate the new Queen. Anna let out a sigh of relief, because that was the last function of the night, and this meant she had nothing else to do for the time being. She stepped out into the balcony, leaned over the parapet, and smiled, remembering the time she and Melody had been alone there. They were virtually strangers, back then. And in just a few days, the southerner princess had managed to steal Anna’s heart. She would never have guessed things would have turned out this way. Maybe her luck was finally changing, after all.

“Anna?” someone called, from behind her.

That voice… it wasn’t Melody, but it wasn’t unfamiliar, either. She turned to look...

...and couldn’t believe her eyes.

“No way,” the redhead whispered. “But… why… _how_ are you here?”

“I received your invitation,” said the other, flashing her a familiar envelope. She was taking small, tentative steps toward the girl. “I’m sorry I got here so last minute. I know things aren’t completely okay between us yet, but… I just couldn’t miss this, you know. You mean a lot to me.”

Anna’s eyes started tearing up. “Belle… I missed you…”

Belle took that as an invitation to come closer. She wrapped her arms around the younger girl.

“Shh… don’t cry. It’s all right, I promise.”

“I thought you hated me,” said Anna, sobbing.

Belle pushed a lock of hair behind Anna’s ear, and wiped her face. “I could never hate you, Ann. You’re my most important person, remember?”

Anna remembered. She nodded, and wiped her tears on her hands.

“Sorry,” said the Queen, regaining a bit of composure. “Is King Adam here? I should go greet him,” Anna made mention to leave, but Belle stopped her, holding her hand.”

“Anna, I should tell you… A couple of months ago, Adam proposed to me.”

Anna turned around to look at her friend. She had already expected this to happen, sooner or later. From the hint of sadness on Belle’s voice, Anna deduced they might have already gotten married, and she hadn’t been invited to the wedding. So much for a best friend, even if some of that was her own fault.

“Well, congratu—”

“I turned him down,” said Belle, interrupting her friend. “In fact, I broke up with him.”

Anna gaped. “What… happened?”

Belle took a deep breath, and let it out, slowly, still holding on firmly to Anna’s hand. “I wasn’t happy, Ann. I mean, I love Adam — or, well, I used to —, but he can be so, so infuriating. Things just weren’t working for us anymore.

Anna offered her friend a kind smile, and squeezed her hand to signal her support. Belle took that moment to lock eyes with her.

“Anna, that night when you kissed me…”

A shiver ran down the Queen’s back, and she started to run her mouth. “Ah, about that, sorry, I didn’t really mean to. I mean, that was pretty awful of me, of course you weren’t interested, I shouldn’t have assumed and all…” she trailed off once the french girl put a finger in front of the Northerner’s lips.

“Please let me finish,” said Belle. “Anna, I owe you an apology. I was horrible to you, back then. I was a mess, I didn’t understand my own feelings, I was angry at Adam, and I took all of it out on you. But I shouldn’t have. I should have given your feelings more consideration. I’m sorry for all the things I said, back then. I regret it all.”

“That’s all right,” said Anna, nervously laughing it off. “Pff, really, I don’t care. It’s okay, you’re my best friend. Ack, I mean, you _were_ my best friend. I was just thinking that I sort of wish we could be friends again? If… if that’s okay with you?”

Belle giggled, and Anna took that as a good sign.

“Will you please let me finish?” Belle asked. Anna nodded, and made a gesture as if zipping up her lips. “What I’m trying to say is… I’ve been thinking, Ann, about you, and that night, and what it meant for me. And I’ve come to realize that you mean a lot to me. I can’t stand not being with you. Anna… is it too late for us?”

Anna smiled, chest filled with warmth. “Of course not, Bee. We can be friends again. Best friends.”

Belle caressed the Queen’s face, not breaking eye-contact. “I want more than that, Anna. Don’t you?”

Anna furrowed her brow. More? But what could… and that’s when Belle brought her face close to hers, and realization hit her.

Oh.

—

It had been one of those days, when Anna had been so busy that Melody barely saw hair or hide of the girl. But the first time it happened, Melody had actually been grateful for it, because she’d been too ashamed of her own awkwardness to face the former princess, then. But now that they were a couple, not being able to spend time with her girlfriend bothered her.

She watched from afar while Queen Anna inaugurated the statue in the main square, then at each of the occasions when she was asked to give speeches, and envied the Russian dignitary that was allowed to sit beside the Queen during dinner. But as soon as the dances started, and Anna was not in the ballroom, Melody figured she could finally snatch the Queen to herself for a few minutes.

Melody saw Anna standing on the balcony outside the dining room. She exchanged a look with Rapunzel, who mouthed “go to her,” before walking back into the ballroom with Eugene. Melody beamed, and walked — almost skipping — eager to finally have some time alone with Anna.

She hadn’t noticed that there was another person on that balcony.

On the night after Anna’s coronation, Melody stood in the dining room and watched her girlfriend kiss another woman, and her heart was broken in a million pieces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> D r a m a .


	11. Chapter 11

Anna backed away from the kiss.

“Stop,” she told Belle, causing the other to flinch in confusion. Did she overstep? Was she going too fast? And the way Anna averted her eyes, looking as if on the verge of tears, that sight alone was heartbreaking.

“Anna… what’s wrong?” she asked. “I thought you wanted this.”

The Queen bit her lower lip so hard it nearly drew blood. She was confused, angry, and most of all, ashamed. Her best friend, one she’d had feelings for in the past, one she thought she’d lost forever… suddenly comes back into her life and kisses her. Anna should have been elated. But she wasn’t.

It felt wrong.

“Belle, why did you come back here?” she asked, trying to keep her voice from breaking.

Belle hesitated. This was not how she imagined their reunion would be like.

“I came for your coronation, Anna,” she said. “I couldn’t miss this day. And I can’t bear to stay away from you anymore. Not now that I know our feelings are mutual.”

_Mutual?_

It almost sounded like a joke.

Anna remembered, clear as day, what happened the time she tried kissing Belle. What she’d been accused of by the older woman. A pervert, a fake, an idiot, a jerk, and many others. Belle had been furious. She’d slapped Anna hard across the face then bolted out of the castle of Arendelle and disappeared. Anna sent her so many letters, apologizing and asking for forgiveness. The one letter she got back from Belle was so cruel that Anna cried about it for three days straight.

That same girl had now just kissed her, and said she had romantic feelings for her.

At the worst possible time.

It was like a cruel joke.

“I can’t, Belle. Not like this,” Anna said, looking into the other’s eyes.

Color drained from Belle’s face. “What… what do you mean? Don’t you… I thought you loved me, Anna.”

“I did. Once. You were my best friend and you were all I had eyes for. But that was five months ago. Belle, you slapped me, you called me names, you went away and sent me a letter saying that you never wanted to see me again.”

“I know, I know,” Belle whispered, and she tried caressing Anna’s face, but the girl stopped her. “I’m sorry, Anna. I really am. But… I don’t understand what the problem is… I… I came back for you. What you felt for me, then, I feel for you now. Can’t you give me a chance?”

Anna shook her head, and averted her eyes. “I already belong to someone else, Belle.”

Belle took a step back, and she seemed to be trembling. “What?” she asked, unable to believe her ears. Anna knew that it would be hard for Belle to hear those words, yet she couldn’t just keep the truth from her, not now. She watched as her former best friend cried, and cried, and cried some more. Belle sat on the floor, resting her back against the balusters, and buried her face in her knees, reduced to a sobbing mess. Anna sat by her side, and waited.

Gradually, the sobbing stopped. Belle lifted her head and wiped her tears.

“Sorry,” she said.

“Don’t be,” Anna retorted. “You did nothing wrong.”

“I kissed you. That was wrong. I should have asked for permission before doing it.”

“Then I suppose that makes us even,” said Anna, smirking.

That remark made Belle chuckle. They remained in silence for a little while.

“Who are they?” Belle asked, at some point.

“Her name’s Melody,” said Anna. “I don’t think you know her. She’s Ariel and Eric’s daughter, from Algarvia.”

Belle nodded. “We might have met, once. Can’t say I remember much. When did you meet her?”

“A few days ago,” Anna admitted, a little bashful. “Things moved quickly, we hit it off.”

Belle chuckled. “A few days. I guess I’m just late, then.”

Anna shrugged. That did seem like it was the case, yes.

“Do you love her?”

That question caught Anna a little off-guard.

“I think it’s a little early to say that,” she replied.

“But you loved me, right?” Belle asked, and Anna nodded.

“I did, yes.”

“So… is there really no chance for us?”

They were staring into each other’s eyes, again. For the longest time, being looked at by those eyes filled Anna with joy. But now that she was looking into them again, she felt… sad. Broken. She knew things would never be the same again.

“I’m afraid not,” she declared.

Belle took a deep breath, and sighed loudly. “I was so sure this would go well. So certain. But… I guess that was just my foolishness. I just… I miss you so much.”

Anna smiled. “I miss you too, Bee. Can’t we be friends again?”

Belle chuckled. “Yeah, I suppose. I mean, since we can’t be lovers, I guess that’s the next best thing.”

They both laughed. This was a little like old times.

“You gotta introduce us, sometime,” Belle asked. “I want to meet the girl who stole my best friend’s heart. Is the old crew here, too? Do they know about the two of you?”

“Yes, and yes,” said Anna. “Blondie actually helped us get together. She’s part of the reason why things moved this fast. Jas and Mer are here as well, you should go talk to them, sometime. They miss you.”

Belle nodded. “I miss them, too.”

As if on cue, someone opened the balcony door and stepped outside. A brunette with a nickname that didn’t quite make sense.

“Hey, Anna, what happened with Mel? I saw…” she trailed off as her eyes fell on the woman sitting beside the new Queen. “Belle?”

“Bon soir, Raps,” she said. “Comment vas-tu?”

Rapunzel chuckled, amazed. “I can’t believe this. You’re _here?_ When did you return? Are you and Anna friends again? Did you make up? And where’s Adam?”

“Calm down, Raps, I’ll explain everything,” said Belle. “But to answer you, I just arrived, earlier today, Anna and I are sort of friends again, and I broke up with Adam.”

Rapunzel’s mouth hung open. “No way. Why?”

“In short, because I fell in love with someone else. But, before you say anything, I should say that they already shot me down.”

“Oh… you poor thing. Are you all right?” said Rapunzel, placing a hand on her old friend’s shoulder.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” said Belle.

Anna cleared her throat. “Blondie, you mentioned something about Melody, right?”

Rapunzel wrinkled her forehead. “Oh yeah, that. I was going to ask you about it. Just now, I saw her running through the ballroom as if the whole place was on fire. I think she was crying, but I can’t say for sure. And I know she came here to talk to you, so I was wondering if something happened between you.”

“Wait…” Anna furrowed her brow, confused. “You’re saying Melody came _here_?”

“I think so, yeah,” said Rapunzel, nodding. “And then she left in a hurry.”

Anna and Belle exchanged a concerned, knowing look.

_Oh, crap._

—

Melody didn’t really know where to go. She couldn’t understand what she’d seen. It was just the night before that she and Anna had become a couple, and now Anna’s out there kissing someone else? How long has this been going on? For how long has the Arendellian made a fool out of her?

She cried as she ran. It hurt so much.

Melody eventually arrived at the castle garden, near the fjord. On a whim, the girl discarded her shoes and jumped into the dark waters. She whispered into her locket, a spell turning her feet to fins, and then she swam. It didn’t matter the direction. All she knew was that she wanted to get as far away from Arendelle as she could.

The mermaid swam for hours, without a care in the world. The good thing about being underwater was that she couldn’t cry down there. So she simply kept swimming. At night, the fjord’s waters were dark, and even the light from her pendant wasn’t much help in finding a direction. But at some point she realized she was going deeped into land, following the fjord. In retrospect, she wished she’d gone to the ocean instead. If she had, she could just swim back to Algarvia and leave all of this behind. But going inland was a problem. It meant she’d have to backtrack, eventually, and pass by the castle of Arendelle.

The first rays of sunlight were beginning to lighten the sky. Melody stopped swimming once she realized she wasn’t even in the fjord anymore, but had now gone into a river and was heading upstream. She was tired. The forest around her seemed inviting, even under a thin blanket of snow. Up ahead were the remains of something that might have once been a dam, but had since been shattered into a million pieces. Melody dove under the water again, and started looking for a friendly fish she could ask for directions.

“Excuse me,” she asked a large, bored-looking salmon. “Do you know any good places to rest, around here?”

“Rest?” asked the salmon. “The only rest we’ll get is when we’re up in the home lake. If we get past the bears, that is. Then we can spawn and die and after that we get all the rest we could ask for.”

Melody winced. “Yeah, no, I kinda… don’t feel like dying just yet. And maybe bears aren’t such a great idea either. Any other options?”

“Not for us, no,” said the salmon. “Try asking the Nökk. They know all the ins and outs of this place.” Then the salmon swam away upstream.

“O...kay…” said Melody. “Thanks for the help. I’ll ask this Nökk, whoever they are.”

Melody turned around, and was greeted by a pair of piercing eyes just a centimeter away from her face, staring at her as if they could look right into her soul. She panicked, shouted, and scurried away to hide behind one of the large rocks on the riverbed. She peeked over it, and saw that the creature was still staring at her: a huge horse made of water, which was weird because they were _in_ the water, and yet she could still see its shape.

“ _Are you lost?”_ The creature asked her, not coming any closer. Their voice was weird, it seemed to come from everywhere at once.

“Who are you?” Melody asked.

“ _I’m the Nökk of the Dark Sea. I protect these waters. It’s not every day that you see a mermaid coming this far inland. Why are you here, young girl?”_

Melody slowly got up and swam around that rock.

“I… actually I don’t know what I came here for. Something happened back in Arendelle, and I wanted to get as far from there as possible. I ended up here by chance. Am I in trouble?”

The Nökk neighed. _“You, in trouble? No, child of the sea, you are not. Merfolk are always welcome in the Northern waters, even in the rivers. But I can see you are of partial human descent, and for that I am wary. Some humans are greedy. Some are violent. Humans like those have hurt these lands in the past, and we, the spirits, have chased them out once. I shall not hesitate to do it again.”_

Melody flinched, fear returning to her. “I… I promise you, Mr. Nökk. I come with no ill intentions.”

“ _Then enjoy your stay,”_ said the water spirit. Just as they said it, small crystals of ice formed in the water between them, only to melt away a second later. _“I am being summoned,”_ said the Nökk. _“I must go.”_

“Wait, hold on!” said Melody. She saw the horse trotting away to one of the river’s margins, and decided to chase them. Melody still had a few questions to ask. But as she emerged on the surface and stared at the water spirit standing on the shore, her eyes met those of another person. A familiar person.

A girl with silver blonde, nearly white hair, and a long white dress stared at Melody with surprise written all over her face.

“Melody?”

The southerner flinched. “Hi… you’re… Elsa, right? Anna’s sister.”

Elsa nodded. “That I am. What are you doing out here, this far up North? And you’re… a mermaid? Really?”

Melody’s heart was filled with fear and regret. _Secret’s out_ , she thought. Who’d have thought she’d run into a familiar face this far away from any place she’d ever been to, before?

“Please don’t tell anyone?!” she begged Elsa. “I’m… half-mermaid, on my mother’s side. But that’s a secret. Lots of people don’t like merfolk, and mom said I shouldn’t tell anyone, or they’ll hunt us down.”

Elsa smiled sympathetically at her. “Your secret is safe with me, Melody. So, to what do I owe the visit?”

Melody’s heart clenched inside her chest again, remembering the reason she was there.

“Elsa… can I ask you a question?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm determined to finish this story today. Not sure how many chapters are still to go, though, I'm kinda just going with the flow.


	12. Chapter 12

“This doesn’t make sense,” said Elsa.

Three people were sitting together inside a goathi: Melody, Elsa, and a friend of Elsa’s called Honeymaren. The fireplace in the center of the place was lit, and the warmth felt nice, despite the fact that two out of the three people present weren’t fully human and therefore weren’t really bothered by the cold. Melody had just been telling Elsa about the events of the previous night, and it was a relief to be able to talk about it with someone.

“Tell me about it,” said Melody.

“Did you really see them kissing?” Elsa asked. “Are you sure about that?”

Melody nodded, sadly. “They were right in front of me. I know what I saw.”

Elsa sighed. “Oh, Anna, what _are_ you doing?”

“Do you know who it was she was kissing?” Honeymaren asked. Melody shook her head. “Can you describe her? Maybe Elsa knows.”

Melody sighed, and tried to recall the exact details of what she’d seen. “Chestnut brown hair, wavy and up in a ponytail. About my height, pale skin, pointy chin. And she wore a yellow dress.

“That could be anyone,” said Elsa. Melody shrugged, she had already deduced as much. Then a detail came back to her, one she hadn’t paid much attention to until that moment.

“She… had a scar on her back, near the shoulder. It looked like claw marks.”

Elsa’s eyes widened. “Oh…”

“Do you know who that is?” Melody asked, and Elsa nodded.

“It… might be Belle.”

Belle… where had Melody heard that name before? Someone Anna and Elsa knew… a girl… whom Anna seemed to have feelings for… Oh.

“Wait… is that… is that the girl Anna used to have feelings for? The one who hated Anna because she kissed her?” Melody’s voice grew more sad with each word. Elsa nodded, slowly. “Ah. That makes sense,” Melody admitted, feeling miserable.

“Come here,” said Elsa, opening her arms, and Melody gratefully accepted the hug.

—

“I need to find her!” said Anna. She had looked all over the castle, and was now running through town asking people if they’d seen her. Rapunzel and Belle were both following behind.

“Anna, this is crazy,” said Rapunzel. “You won’t find her just wandering around.”

“I need to,” Anna repeated. “If she saw Belle and I kissing, she must have gotten the wrong idea, I need to explain things to her.”

“Raps is right, Ann,” said Belle. “It’s too late to go on a blind chase. Do you at least have any idea of where she could have gone?”

Anna grunted. “No. But I’ll find out.”

The other two sighed. Anna was one of the most obstinate people they’d ever met. Belle guessed that Anna probably wouldn’t stop looking until sunrise, and she really would have, if Kristoff hadn’t interfered.

They found him drinking with several strangers in a pub. The mountain man heard Anna’s retelling of the events of that night, and facepalmed when she got to the part where she admitted Melody might have seen her and Belle kissing.

“Anna… how could you mess this up so badly?” he asked, disappointed.

“Err… sorry?” said Anna, tentatively.

Kristoff shook his head. “Save your apologies for when we find Melody. You’ll need them. And pray to God that she gives you a chance because, honestly, Anna, I’m not sure you deserve it.”

Anna felt mildly outraged by that accusation. “It was a mistake!” she argued. “And I wasn’t the one who initiated the kiss! This is all just a misunderstanding!”

“Did you kiss her back?” Kristoff asked, simply. He saw a look of mild despair settle on Anna’s face, and the answer was obvious. “Anyway, it’s too late to go looking for her today. We don’t know where she could have gone, or if she’ll be back. For now, the best course of action is to wait. If she’s not back by morning we’ll send a few search parties to the city and the forest. I don’t think she would have gone too far. In her place I would probably want to go back home, which means she’ll be back before her family’s ship leaves Arendelle. When is it scheduled to leave, by the way?”

Anna winced. “Well, I have a meeting with her parents tomorrow, for trade negotiations. I expect they’ll leave the day after, if the weather is good.”

Kristoff nodded. “Good. That means she’ll come back before then. She’s probably just avoiding you for the time being, because of the awkward situation it would cause.” Anna’s chest hurt to hear those words, but she knew them to be true. Kristoff placed both hands on her shoulders. “Don’t worry, we’ll find her. And then you can… I don’t know… beg for forgiveness and hope for the best.”

Anna chuckled nervously. “Doesn’t sound like I have great chances, eh?”

“Not gonna sugarcoat this to you, Ann, you don’t.”

—

Melody wasn’t back by morning. Anna did as Kristoff had instructed her, and sent out a few search parties. The worst part of the morning was having to tell Ariel and Eric about their daughter’s disappearance. Anna didn’t go into detail, of course, she simply said nobody had seen Melody since the night before. It was already hard enough to admit to herself that she was the one at fault, imagine admitting this to the girl’s _parents_.

By the afternoon, with still no news of Melody’s whereabouts, Anna was starting to freak out. She was sitting at her desk in the library, glancing out the window at every few minutes, when there was a knock on the door.

“Come in,” she said.

The door was opened, and Anna saw, to her surprise, that her sister was standing in the doorway.

“E— Elsa? When did you arrive? I didn’t see you coming.”

“That’s because I didn’t come through the gates, sis.”

Elsa turned into her spirit form: a flurry of snow, which drifted through the place as if led by the wind. She fluttered around, then turned back to human just next the fireplace.

“Oh, yeah, I forgot you could do that, now,” said Anna, embarrassed. “So, erm… what brings you here today, sis? I called you over for charades, but that’s only next Friday. I’ll still be busy handling the negotiation with all the foreign dignitaries, and Kristoff’s got ice to deliver with Sven.”

Elsa raised a hand, asking her sister to stop talking. “I’m here for a different reason,” said the spirit. “Anna… is Belle back in Arendelle?”

Anna hesitated. Did Elsa know? She couldn’t, right?

“She is, yes. Belle arrived yesterday, just in time for the coronation.”

Elsa nodded. “And from what I’ve heard, you two shared a kiss.”

The color drained from Anna’s face, and her heart skipped a beat. “Who told you that?”

“You don’t deny it, then?” Elsa pressed further.

Anna sighed. “No, you’re right. We kissed. Briefly,” Elsa frowned sadly when her sister said it. “Please let me explain,” Anna insisted. “She was the one who did it. Belle said she broke up with Adam, and she didn’t know I was dating someone, she thought I was still in love with her. She kissed me because, somehow, it seems that she has feelings for me now,” Anna chuckled nervously. “But there’s nothing between us, I swear.”

Anna looked up at her sister with a face that basically pleaded her for forgiveness. Elsa just looked sad.

“And did you have to do it right in front of Melody?” Elsa asked. “Not that it would be okay to do it behind her back, either.”

This intrigued Anna. “Sis… who told you all of this?”

Elsa sat down on the couch near the fireplace, and Anna walked over to sit beside her. They eyed each other. The look on Elsa’s face told her sister that she, too, thought Anna had messed this up big time, while the look on Anna’s face informed Elsa that the Queen at least seemed to regret her actions.

“I ran into Melody, this morning,” said Elsa, to Anna’s surprise.

“Y— you did?! Where is she?! Oh god, we’ve been looking for her everywhere! Is she all right, Elsa? Please tell me she’s not hurt!”

“Hey, hey, calm down, sis, she’s fine. Or… as fine as one can under these circumstances. She’s staying at the forest, I asked Honeymaren to look out for her. I came here alone because I thought I should have a word with you. To… try to figure out what this whole mess is all about.”

Anna let out a breath of relief. Despite the dire situation between them, she was still glad that Melody was safe and out of danger.

“I’m sorry that you got involved,” said the Queen.

“Nonsense,” Elsa retorted. “I’m your sister, I want to be a part of your life. And this means being by your side in the good and the bad times. Being proud and happy for your accomplishments, but also scolding you when you do something wrong. And you did something very wrong, this time.”

Anna nodded. “I know. I need to talk to her. To explain what really happened, and… to apologize, too. Hey Elsa, do you think she’ll forgive me?”

Elsa shrugged. “I don’t know. Do you think you deserve it?”

It wasn’t an accusation, but rather an honest question. Anna thought about it for a moment.

“Well, Belle was the one who kissed me, not the other way around. And I don’t have feelings for her anymore. I mean, I love Belle, of course, but that’s _different_. Belle’s a friend, and I missed her a lot, but when I think about Melody… I want to protect her, you know. I want to be next to her at all times. I feel happy when she smiles, and I get worried sick when I think she’s in danger. I care about her so, so much, Elsa. I… I think I love her, maybe?”

Elsa smiled. “Then tell her that.”

Anna got to her feet, suddenly filled with determination.

_Wait for me, Mel. I’m coming._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Elsa spirit form thing was actually something I took from another fic. I just think it suits her so much.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really short chapter, since I'm trying to fight a bit of a writer's block.

Elsa left the forest in the early afternoon, leaving Melody in Honeymaren’s care. This proved to be a problem, for neither girl was well-versed in the other’s native language. Their attempts to communicate blended Melody’s rudimentary knowledge of Arendellian — a language not entirely unlike Honeymaren’s Northuldrian — with improvised signing and pointing at stuff.

The practical effect of this was that, when Honeymaren asked Melody to join her on a boat ride into the fjord, the southern princess was oblivious to the fact that the purpose of said journey would be _fishing_ , of all things. Her stomach curled up on itself when Honeymaren pulled an impaled fish out of the water, and she heard the salmon beg for their life. One look at Melody’s face, then, told Maren that her guest wasn’t comfortable in that situation, and so they returned to land.

The rest of the day was mostly uneventful. Admittedly, Honeymaren had considered showing Melody how to skin and divide meat cuts of reindeer, but, after the girl’s reaction to salmon fishing, she figured it might be better to skip that particular Northuldrian custom. So she decided to show her how to make traditional Northuldrian clothes, but the monotony of that activity allowed Melody’s lack of sleep and exhaustion from swimming to catch up with her, and it wasn’t long until she fell asleep on the spot.

Melody dreamed of Arendelle, of Anna and the coronation. She dreamed of Anna’s betrayal, which, in the manner of dreams, now included a three-headed unicorn (three-nicorn?) and an army of talking snowmen who introduced themselves as Olaf’s twin siblings. Being stabbed on the back didn’t hurt any less just because it was a dream, and Melody woke up with her heart racing, and soon tears started to roll down her cheeks.

“Why?”

Looking around, Melody saw that she was inside one of the goathi. Honeymaren must have carried her there at some point. Did she really fall asleep out of the blue? There were people talking outside, though she could not make out what they were saying. Eventually, the front entrance of the tent was pulled open, and a tall blond woman walked inside.

“Elsa?” Melody asked, surprised. “You’re… back already? I thought you said you were going to Arendelle.”

“I did,” the woman replied. “I just came back a couple of hours ago.”

Melody stared at her, incredulous. “No, that can’t be right. Arendelle is, what, a day’s journey from here? Even by horseback it would take you at least eight hours. And I just saw you leaving, earlier today. You can’t have gone there and back already.”

Elsa simpered, warmly, and came to sit beside Melody on the mattresses.

“Mel… I left for Arendelle yesterday. You slept through a whole day, according to Honeymaren.”

Melody leaned back against the wooden frame of the hut, letting that information sink in. “Wow... I suppose I was a little tired,” she told Elsa. “So, anyway, how was your trip? Were you able to get that book you mentioned?”

The older woman nodded. “I did, yes. But that wasn’t the only reason I went back, this time. You see… someone came back here with me, she wants to talk to you.”

Melody furrowed her brow. “Well, who is it?”

Elsa motioned toward the hut entrance, and Melody saw a redhead girl standing there, looking at them. Her heart clenched inside her chest at the sight, and numerous conflicting emotions began waging battle in her head.

“Hello, Mel,” said Anna.


	14. Chapter 14

The tension in the air was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Anna and Melody were standing on opposite ends of the fireplace in the center of the goathi. This was Elsa’s fault, Melody realized. She had explicitly left Arendelle because she did not want to see her (former? former-to-be?) lover, and Elsa just had to go back there and fetch her. Melody stared angrily at Anna, waiting for her to speak. But the girl looked downcast and saddened, and seeing her like that made Melody’s heart ache as well. _Dang, I really am in too deep, aren’t I?_

“So?” Melody pressed, trying to push the other woman to say something.

“I’m sorry,” Anna whispered, voice nearly breaking.

Melody huffed. “Sorry doesn’t cut it.”

“I know, I know!” Anna hastily put in. “I hurt you, Mel, and I can’t forgive myself for that. I’m not asking you to forgive me, either. Just… could you please let me explain?”

This was a mistake, Melody realized. She should never have swum inland. She should have turned around as soon as she noticed the mistake, and swam all the way back to Algarvia, her home, where she could put all of this behind her. In fact, very little was stopping her from doing so, at that moment.

“What is there to explain, Anna?” she asked, her chest hurting more than ever. “You kissed another woman. You cheated on me. Or perhaps being your girlfriend doesn’t mean we are exclusively seeing each other? Because if that’s the case, I didn’t get the memo.” She huffed, angrily, trying not to stare for too long into Anna’s saddened eyes, for fear she might change her mind and make a mistake.

“No…” said Anna, barely more than a whisper. “You’re right. I promised you faithfulness, and I broke that promise. There’s no excuse for it.”

“Then what are you even here for?!” Melody exclaimed, raising her voice. “We had been a couple for one day, Anna! _One day!_ Then you go and stab me in the back! Seriously, just…” she closed her eyes, fighting back the tears. “…just go.”

Anna wiped the tears from her eyes.

“You’re right,” said the redhead. “This… was a mistake. I shouldn’t have come. I’ll go. I’m sorry for everything, Mel, I truly am.”

Anna left the tent, eyes filled with tears and her heart in tatters. She walked over to where her family was gathered, chatting. Elsa saw her as she came, and the miserable state her sister was in. She ran over to Anna and immediately pulled her into a hug. Anna sobbed on Elsa’s shoulder, while the older sibling tried to console her.

“It’ll be all right,” said Elsa.

“I messed up,” Anna replied. “I shouldn’t have come. I… I couldn’t tell her, Elsa.”

Elsa nodded, knowingly. “It’s all right. At least you tried. What are you going to do, now?”

Anna shrugged. “Go back home, I guess. Rethink my life’s mistakes?” Elsa laughed at that declaration. “And then,” Anna continued, “try to figure out what I’m going to tell her parents. Elsa, please, do me a favor and tell Melody that she can come back to Arendelle, already. The Algarvian delegation is waiting for her to depart, and I promise I won’t chase her around or make things more awkward the next time we see each other.”

Elsa nodded. Anna started crying again, the weight of her own words finally registering on her brain.

“Don’t worry,” said the eldest. “Things will be all right, I promise.”

—

Elsa walked into her goathi. She saw her guest sitting on the floor near the fireplace, knees pressed against her chest. She appeared to have cried out all her tears, and was now simply staring at the fire, so lost in her own thoughts that she barely registered the presence of the Arendellian princess.

“Anna left for Arendelle a short while ago,” Elsa informed her. “She asked me to tell you that your parents are waiting for your return.”

Melody nodded, slowly. “Sorry if I overstayed. I suppose I’ll be on my way, now.”

“You’re a welcome guest, Melody. You can stay here however long you want. That is, so long as your parents approve, of course, Arendelle isn’t looking for diplomatic conflict with Algarvia anytime soon.”

Melody chuckled. “Don’t worry. And thanks for letting me stay here.”

“Say, before you leave,” Elsa began to suggest, “can I show you something?”

—

Elsa led Melody through the forest. The southerner had never before ridden on the back of an Earth Giant, and she would have to admit that she found the experience rather unsettling. It was like riding an earthquake. Melody definitely didn’t feel much in her element there, in more ways than one.

The advantage of it was that it was a very fast way to cover great distances. Before long, they’d reached their destination, and the spirit gracefully (or as gracefully as a living pile of rocks can act) placed Melody back on the ground. She thanked the spirit.

A short distance away, a flurry of snowflakes condensed and transformed into a person. Melody knew Elsa was supposed to be a spirit, but it wasn’t until she saw her in her spirit form that the girl truly understood the meaning of that.

“This way,” said the fifth spirit, motioning for Melody to follow her. She led the girl to a beach. “This is the Dark Sea,” said Elsa. “There’s an island not too far from the shore. It’s called Ahtohallan.”

“Err… Ahto-who-what?”

“Ahtohallan,” Elsa repeated. “The river of memories. My home. There’s something I want you to see there,” she walked closer to the sea, and the Nökk arose from the water to greet them. “So, anyway, I know it’s a little silly to ask you this, but can you swim? Or should I offer you a ride on the back of the water spirit?”

Melody snorted. “Please, Elsa. I’m a mermaid, I can swim better than half the fish in the ocean. Not to brag, of course.”

“You _are_ bragging,” Elsa pointed out, and they both laughed. “In any case, to get there, all you have to do is swim North. I’ll guide you, but keep that in mind in case you get lost.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t,” Melody reassured her.

Elsa nodded before climbing on the spirit’s back, and soon she was trotting into the ocean. Melody whispered the spell into her locket, exchanging feet for fins, and dove under the surface of this new and unknown ocean. As soon as she knew Melody was following her, Elsa sped the Nökk into a gallop. The journey took the better part of an hour. A human swimmer might have gotten exhausted, but, to a mermaid, that was child’s play. They emerged into the rocky shore of a large island, right next to a glacier.

“We’re here,” said Elsa. “Ahtohallan.”

Melody stared at it for a moment. She’d seen glaciers before, but they never really lost their beauty.

“Pretty…” she said. “Is this what you wanted me to see?”

“Not quite yet,” said Elsa. “We need to dive deeper. Come on, follow me.”

Elsa waited until Melody had returned to her human form, then led her through the entrance of a cave in the ice. Surprisingly, there was light inside. It shone in several colors and seemed to come from beyond the walls of ice. The small cave opened into a gallery, and that one led to a hallway, then room after room they went deeper into the glacier. It was like a castle carved into the ice. They kept going further in, and further down, until a room that was completely filled with darkness up to the moment when Elsa stepped in it.

Four diamonds of ice appeared in front off them. They spun around each other, and came down to the floor, forming a compass figure. Elsa stepped into the center of the compass, and as soon as she did, the entire gallery was illuminated, images displayed on the walls in a mishmash of Arendelle and Algarvia. She saw Ariel, Eric, Sebastian, but also Anna, Kristoff, the Northuldra. That place seemed to be reacting to both of their presences, showing them things that related to each of them.

Elsa looked back at her, and smiled. “Welcome to Ahtohallan.” Melody didn’t respond. She was speechless. Elsa took a deep breath, and conjured a large cloud of snowflakes that spun around the room. It covered the floor in a blanket of white, crisp snow, and it formed figures: places, people, the past. Melody saw her grandfather, the pendant, the wall, the witch Morgana, some things she remembered, others she was seeing for the first time. And Elsa’s past there too, mingled with hers. She saw her playing with Anna, as children. Watched the girl’s parents leave on the fateful journey from which they never returned. Saw Elsa bring an eternal winter. It felt… intimate. Like she was intruding, seeing things she wasn’t supposed to see. She hesitated, and Elsa noticed it.

“Come,” the spirit said, in a comforting voice. “I know you have questions, and you might feel lost right now, which is why I brought you here. The answers you seek are in here.

Melody braced herself, and resumed walking, following Elsa deeper into the chamber. The spirit hummed a song as they went, a lullaby. Then she stopped, and Melody wondered what reason she could have for it, until she saw the figures in front of them.

It was Elsa and Anna, not as children, but looking very much the way they did in present day. They seemed to be having some sort of discussion. Not just that, but the topic of the discussion was… Melody herself.

The memory kept moving:

> “… _I need to talk to her. To explain what really happened, and to apologize, too. Hey Elsa, do you think she’ll forgive me?”_
> 
> “ _I don’t know. Do you think you deserve it?”_
> 
> “ _Well, Belle was the one who kissed me, not the other way around. And I don’t have feelings for her anymore. I mean, I love Belle, of course, but that’s different. Belle’s a friend, and I missed her a lot, but when I think about Melody… I want to protect her, you know. I want to be next to her at all times. I feel happy when she smiles, and I get worried sick when I think she’s in danger. I care about her so, so much, Elsa. I… I think I love her, maybe?”_

“This is why Anna came to the forest with me,” said the real Elsa, smiling. “This happened yesterday, when I went to see her. Anna wanted to explain to you what really happened. She wanted you to know about the true extent of her feelings.”

Melody tried to process what she was hearing. Anna had wanted to confess to her? She loved her? But that couldn’t be. When you love someone, you don’t cheat on them.

This time Melody was the one pressing forward. She wanted to know, to understand.

A staircase. Another memory. The kiss. Melody’s stomach dropped at the sight, she hadn’t expected to relive that particular situation. But now she wasn’t seeing it from her own perspective, and the events that followed the kiss were new to her. Melody watched the scene unfold in front of her, realizing that Anna had pulled back from the kiss a mere second after Melody herself had left, crying and broken.

> “ _I can’t, Belle. Not like this.”_
> 
> “ _What… what do you mean? Don’t you… I thought you loved me, Anna.”_
> 
> “ _I did. Once. You were my best friend and you were all I had eyes for. But that was five months ago. Belle, you slapped me, you called me names, you went away and sent me a letter saying that you never wanted to see me again.”_
> 
> “ _I know, I know. I’m sorry, Anna. I really am. But… I don’t understand what the problem is… I… I came back for you. What you felt for me, then, I feel for you now. Can’t you give me a chance?”_
> 
> “ _I already belong to someone else, Belle.”_

Melody felt a weight lift in her chest. So Anna hadn’t really cheated on her on purpose. Anna might have loved Belle, but she wasn’t going to dump Melody for her. It gave her a smidgen of hope, and Melody could almost find it in herself to forgive her girlfriend. There was only one thing still weighting in her chest. Anna may have pulled back from the kiss, but not before kissing Belle back. Melody wanted, _needed_ to find out why. She took a step forward—

—and was stopped by a hand wrapped around her wrist, holding her back.

“Look down,” came Elsa’s voice from behind her.

Melody did as she was told, and was shocked. She had almost walked into a deep, dark abyss. She allowed Elsa to pull her back to safety.

“Down there is the heart of Ahtohallan,” Elsa explained. “I’m not going to lie to you, Melody, the answers you seek are probably down there. But nobody can survive in the heart. It’s cold beyond anything you can imagine.”

“The cold doesn’t bother me,” Melody tried to argue. “I can barely feel it, most of the time.” But even as she said it, she was reconsidering her words. Down there, on the stairway to the heart, Melody was starting to feel real cold for the first time in her life.

“It doesn’t bother me, either,” Elsa retorted. “Yet the one time I went down there I froze and died for a short while. And I’m _a spirit_ , for heaven’s sake. I won’t let you make that same mistake.”

Melody pursed her lips and thought about it. “But… I have to,” she said. “From what I’ve seen so far, I think Anna may really love me, but that’s _not enough_ , Elsa.”

“It’s not worth it,” said Elsa, “to lose everything for an answer. Do you understand that?”

Melody did, in fact, understand it. She lowered her eyes, and nodded. “You’re right…”

She allowed Elsa to guide her back to the Dark Sea.

“So… what now?” Melody asked. “I still have some questions, and I’m more lost than ever. I care for Anna, I want to trust her, I just… don’t know if I can. Before, I thought it would be okay if I just went back to my country and tried to forget about all of this. I’m not so sure, now.” She fought back some tears. “What do I do now?”

“Someone once told me,” said Elsa, “that when you can’t see the path ahead of you, all you can do is the next right thing. Do you think you can figure out what that is?”

Melody thought about it for a long time.

“Yeah. I think I can.”


	15. Chapter 15

Queen Anna returned to Arendelle feeling miserable, guilty and sorry for herself. It would pass, she realized. Kristoff was right: the young Queen had a terrible track record when it came to past infatuations. So she knew for a fact that what she was feeling at that moment was temporary. A heartache, nothing else. What hurt the most was knowing that for the first time in her life she’d actually had a shot at romance, and she blew it. Her previous failed relationships, Anna could write off as bad luck and naiveté, but not this one. This time she had nobody to blame but herself.

The trip from Enchanted Forest to Arendelle was a long one. Anna cried for the first two hours, stared idly at the landscape for another two, slept, decided to walk beside the wagon for a little while, cried some more, listened to some of Olaf’s quasi-infinite list of questionable scientific facts, and eventually climbed into the wagon and went to sleep some more. When she woke up again it was already morning, and they were crossing the valley near the city.

“Hey, remember this place?” Kristoff commented as they passed the Wandering Oaken’s Trading Post (and Sauna).

“How could I forget, _Kristoff Bjorgman of No Place in Particular_ ,” Anna quoted. That had been how the mountain man introduced himself, all those years ago. “The guy who sings lullabies to reindeer. I wonder what became of him.”

“He’s probably out there somewhere, working as a coachman for some crazy Queen.”

“Really? But I heard he was an ice harvester,” Anna joked.

“Ice _master_ ,” Kristoff corrected. “Although I admit it probably amounts to the same thing. So, where to now, your Majesty?”

Anna snorted. “Please, Kristoff, you know I don’t really care about the formalities. Let’s just go back to the castle. I’m tired. It was a long, pointless trip. No offense, Sven,” she added, to counter the reindeer’s protest.

Kristoff and Sven did as they were told, guiding Anna back to the Bridge of Arches that connected the city of Arendelle to the Castle. Halfway through it, though, he stopped.

“Eh? What’s wrong?” Anna asked.

Kristoff snickered. “Look for yourself.”

Anna did, and was absolutely surprised and confused with what she saw. Standing on the bridge, some twenty meters ahead of them, was no one other than Melody. Anna immediately jumped off the wagon, and hurried over to her.

“Mel? What are you doing here? I… I thought you would stay at the forest.”

“I actually got back just about an hour ago. Your steward, Kai, told me you still hadn’t returned, so I’ve been waiting here to talk to you. I know you must be tired, and I know you’ll probably need a bath and some rest first, but I have to ask you this… Anna, can we talk?”

Anna’s heart melted. There she was, the woman she loved, standing right in front of her, looking concerned rather than angry. The last time they spoke, Anna was sure that her girlfriend would never want anything to do with her anymore. It felt like a break-up. And yet, now she was standing in front of her, looking the Queen in the eyes, and it made Anna believe, against her better judgment, that there might still be hope for them as a couple. From what she could tell, Melody was trying.

“Of course we can,” said Anna, her voice shaking the slightest bit. “But… shouldn’t you bathe as well? You’re drenched.”

Melody eyed her clothes. She was so used to always being under the sea that wet clothes and wet hair were a nonissue most of the time. But clearly Anna didn’t think so. She didn’t even know Melody was a mermaid, not so far, so it stood to reason that she’d be worried.

“I guess so,” said Melody. “Do you mind if I use the castle facilities one last time?” she asked.

Anna’s heart ached at the mention of the word ‘last’, but she assented, and the pair walked together toward the castle gates. Once inside, they went each to their respective rooms. It was agreed that they’d meet in the library as soon as both girls felt ready, and so they did.

When Anna arrived at the library, Melody was already there waiting for her. She was standing on the balcony, leaning over the parapet, and that sight gave Anna a feeling of déjà-vu, as she remembered the first time they’d been alone together, a few days ago.

“Aren’t you cold, out here?” Anna asked. It was both a reenactment of that time, and an actual concern.

“The cold doesn’t bother me,” Melody stated. Before all of that, she might have tried to conceal her origins from anyone else. But the trip to Ahtohallan changed her. She didn’t feel the need to hide who she was from Anna anymore.

“You sound like my sister,” Anna stated.

“We’re similar in that respect,” Melody agreed. “For completely different reasons, though. I’m not a spirit, in case you’re wondering.”

Anna chuckled. “Well, if you were, I wouldn’t be surprised. You’re special, Melody.”

They locked eyes.

“What am I to you, then?” Melody asked.

Anna felt a hint of anxiety in her chest. Melody was testing her. She knew how she should answer that. Melody was the woman she loved. That was as well as she could put it. The problem was the same as it had been the previous day in the forest. It didn’t feel fair to tell Melody that. Not after she’d completely shattered her girlfriend’s heart. Much as she didn’t like it, Anna knew that the only right thing to do in that situation was to let Melody go.

“I don’t think I should answer that,” Anna said, instead.

Melody didn’t appreciate that hesitation, even as she understood the Queen’s reasoning.

“I’ve been to Ahtohallan,” she explained, making Anna’s eyebrows go up in surprise. “Elsa took me there, yesterday, after you left. Have you been there?” Anna shook her head. Of course she hadn’t. It was too dangerous, according to Elsa. “Well,” Melody continued, “there’s a gallery there where events from the past are recreated from the ice and snow around you. Elsa says it has something to do with water having memory, does that make any sense to you?” Anna nodded. Of course it did. Olaf was proof enough of that. “Well, Ahtohallan showed me some things. I saw the kiss, Anna. The one between you and Belle.” Anna’s heart clenched as she heard those words. She’d never been so nervous before in her life, not even at her own coronation.

“Mel, please… I want you to understand, that kiss, it didn’t mean anything. Belle was the one who kissed me, and I told her that I didn’t want to do that, and that I already had a lover. I promise you that I had no intention to kiss her, not at all.”

“I know,” said Melody. “Ahtohallan told me that. But I can’t believe it when you say it had no meaning. I came back here because I needed to ask you something, Anna. And I need you to promise me that you’ll answer honestly, no matter what. Can you do that?”

Anna nodded. “Of course.”

“Right,” said Melody. “My question is: when Belle kissed you, Anna, why did you kiss her back?”

Anna felt her stomach drop. She had been dreading that question ever since the night it happened. The Queen of Arendelle could claim innocence from having any intention of cheating on the southern princess, but she couldn’t lie about her reaction to the kiss. She sighed, and averted her eyes, embarrassed.

“I guess I still had — have — lingering feelings for her,” she declared. There was no point in hiding the truth. She waited for Melody to lash out at her, but when that didn’t happen, she resumed her explanation. “Belle was… she was once one of the most important people in the world to me. I loved her… and then I lost her. Losing someone you care so much about, it’s a horrible feeling, I’d have done anything to go back to being friends with her. So when Belle came back, that night, when she offered for us to rekindle, I didn’t know how to react. I think that’s why I kissed Belle back, then. I was scared of rejecting her, scared that she’d run away and hate me once more. I kissed her because... I didn’t want to hurt her again. Mel, I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry. It was wrong of me, and I regret it so much it’s eating me alive.”

A single tear ran down Anna’s left cheek. Melody sighed, and pulled back from the balcony railing. She walked back to Anna, and wiped the tear on her face with a thumb.

“Thanks for telling me the truth,” she whispered.

Anna nodded. “I owed you that. At least, that.”

“I know that you would never hurt anyone on purpose. That you had a heart of gold, and you always put people’s needs before your own. I still don’t think I can fully trust you, not yet, but Elsa told me that I should try to do the next right thing, and I think the next right thing right now is for me to forgive you.” She raised a hand, a peace offering. “Friends?”

Anna smiled. There it was, the official breakup. But somehow, it wasn’t as bad as she’d imagined it. She shook Melody’s hand. “Friends,” she agreed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The line "Kristoff Bjorgman, of Nowhere/No Place in Particular" isn't in the Frozen movies, but it is still more or less canon. It first showed up in a deleted scene from the first Frozen movie. It later made an appearance in the official book Frozen 2: Forest of Shadows, and I hear it's also in the Disney on Ice show. So I'm writing as if that was how Kristoff first introduced himself to Anna.


	16. Chapter 16

Three years passed. Life in Arendelle flourished, and Anna was slowly getting the hang of handling trade negotiations and politics in general. She finally felt that she was being able to give back something to her people, her kingdom, her home. Not much had changed in those past three years, except maybe for Elsa and Merida, who finally got together (after eleven years!). Anna wrote to all her friends about it, when it happened.

She also wrote to Melody, from time to time. Short, sporadic letters, no different from the ones she wrote to Rapunzel and the other girls. Melody’s replies were shorter and more professional, at first, but they grew a little more lax with the years. Time, indeed, healed all wounds, and the two of them were slowly growing more comfortable with writing to each other.

The last letter Anna had sent to Algarvia was to tell Melody that Olaf had apparently written a poetry book. She made sure to transcribe one of the poems in her letter, his “Ode to Carrots.” This time, Melody’s reply was taking a little longer to come. And when it did, it came in the form of two distinct envelopes: one regular, one red.

Anna opened the first one.

> _Dear Anna,_
> 
> _I’m sure Olaf’s poems must be remarkable. I look forward to hearing them in person, sometime in the future. That said, I must apologize for my tardy response. Many events have transpired these past few months, some of them good, and some bad, and I needed to get confirmation of a few things before writing back to you._
> 
> _You should receive, along with this letter, a red envelope. I believe you’ll find its contents somewhat puzzling. I assure you, though, that all will be explained in due time, should you see fit to accept the invitation._
> 
> _Your friend,_
> 
> _Melody._

Anna furrowed her brow. Melody wasn’t the type to send cryptic messages like those. And sure enough, Anna’s confusion only grew once she opened the red envelope. The letter inside invited the Royal Family of Arendelle to attend the coronation of Her Highness, Princess Melody of Atlantica, in a month’s time.

Atlantica, not Algarvia.

Atlantica, a name Anna had only heard associated with fairy-tales and sailor’s stories of merfolk.

This, coupled with Melody’s cryptic letter… it really wasn’t a mistake, was it? Anna grinned, realizing the implications of that invitation. There was no doubt in her mind. Anna immediately wrote Elsa a note, asking her to come back from the Forest as soon as she could. She gave Kristoff and Sven a heads-up — why not? They were also her family, after all — and finally she made preparations for the trip. A couple of weeks later, Queen Anna, Elsa, Olaf, Sven and Kristoff were departing from Arendelle, sailing toward southern waters.

“It’s too bad Mer isn’t here,” Anna commented, at some point during the trip. “I’d like to see Melody’s face when she saw you two together. She’s the only one I’m still keeping in the dark about that, you know.”

“Anna…!” Elsa exclaimed, in a reproachful tone.

“It might not be too late to send a letter to DunBroch, you know?” said Kristoff, fighting (and losing) against seasickness.

“Don’t go giving her ideas,” Elsa reprehended him. “So, anyway, Anna, you never really told us exactly what this invitation from Melody is all about. I’m not sure what to expect.”

“I told you before, Els, I don’t even know, myself,” Anna grinned. She did have a guess, though. “I guess it’ll be something of a surprise for all of us.”

The weather was in their favor, and the royal delegation of Arendelle — arguably the strangest royal delegation in history, since it contained a Queen, a spirit, a snowman, an ice harvester and a reindeer — had no trouble arriving at the shores of Algarvia.

“Welcome,” said Queen Ariel, greeting them at the docks. “I trust you had a pleasant journey.”

“Couldn’t be more pleasant, your Majesty,” said Anna, with a curtsy.

“I reckon my daughter has not been very specific in her letter to Arendelle,” said Queen Ariel. “I’m afraid I am the one to blame for it. Past events have made me wary of revealing too much of our condition through letters. Melody is out at the moment, but I’ll call for her as soon as she returns, and then she can explain everything to you. In the meantime, why don’t you come inside and get settled?”

Anna nodded. “That would be wonderful, your Majesty.”

—

Elsa, Kristoff and Olaf were in their respective rooms in the castle of Algarvia. Most of the castle staff was a little frightened of the snowman, at first, but Olaf couldn’t be happier. “It’s summer! Summer in April! I love Algarvia!” he would be found yelling gleefully through the castle yards.

Anna seized the first opportunity she could find to slip out of the castle and walk over to the beach. She could still make out the areas where, according to Melody, there used to be a large wall splitting the castle apart from the ocean. The climate here was considerably warmer than in Arendelle, possibly even a little too warm, once actual summer came around. Anna walked around until she found a nice, secluded rock that seemed to be just the perfect spot to sit and appreciate the view.

She’d been so distracted by the beautiful sight of sunset that she never even noticed when someone swam over to her, and only realized she wasn’t alone when water splashed on her face.

“Wha—!?” she interjected, surprised.

Someone giggled. Dark hair, round face, green eyes. Anna grinned. Melody was in the sea, right next to her, leaning over one of the rocks and staring at the Arendellian Queen with a smile. It made Anna’s heart skip a beat. Melody flounced her tail: because she had a tail. A large, red fish-like tail, instead of legs. Melody was one of the merfolk.

“Surprised?” she asked Anna, who opened a huge grin.

“Not really,” said the northerner.

Anna’s confident response caught Melody off-guard. “Wait, what? Really?”

“As I reckon, we once swam together in the fjord near the castle, many years ago. Do you remember that?” Anna asked, teasingly. “Well, I may or may not have glimpsed a large fish tail as I was about to return to the castle.”

Melody’s jaw dropped. “You knew all along?!”

Anna laughed. “Well, I can’t say I ‘knew,’ but I did have my suspicions. I grew up hearing tales about merfolk, and I’ve heard that arctic merfolk are immune to cold. You did mention not being affected by it a couple of times in the past. Besides, you went to Ahtohallan with Elsa, remember? My sister would never take a human with her across the Dark Sea, not after what happened to our parents. Then there were all sorts of little things, like how you never ate the fish during the meals we had together. Did you think I wouldn’t notice?”

Melody’s face was flushed red with embarrassment.

“I… wow,” said the mermaid. “I… feel kinda silly now.” Anna giggled, amused. “To be honest,” Melody continued, “there’s one thing you said which was wrong, right now.”

“Ohh?” said Anna, interested. “Which one?”

“I’m not an arctic mermaid,” said Melody. “My mother’s entire family is from Atlantica, and my father’s family is from Algarvia. Me being invulnerable to cold was a… side effect of a spell,” the memory of Morgana came back to her, and left a bitter taste in her mouth.

“So you’re a half-mermaid, then?” Anna asked, intrigued. “I wasn’t aware they existed.

Melody winced. “I don’t really like that term. Makes me feel like less than a person. I’m one-hundred-percent mermaid _and_ human. But yes, my mother is a mermaid, so you got the right idea.”

“And now…” said Anna, “...you’re about to become a Queen?”

Melody nodded. “My grandfather died six months ago. He was old, and he died in his sleep. I always thought that once he passed away the throne would go to my mother, or to one of my aunts. But it seems that Grandpa Triton’s last wish was for me to take up his mantle. It’s still a little hard to believe this is happening.”

“Well, I do not know your relatives all that well,” said Anna, “but for what it’s worth, I think your grandfather made the right decision. You will be a wonderful queen.”

Melody buried her face in her hands, and winced. “Don’t say it, Anna. I’m panicking, already. I’ve never been so nervous.” Anna laughed, which seemed to send the wrong message. “What’s so funny?!” Melody inquired.

“Oh, it’s nothing, really,” said Anna, grinning. “I’m just thinking that our roles are reversed, right now. Do you remember how nervous I was at my own coronation?”

“I don’t know, Ann… I remember you mostly being able to keep your cool. Were you nervous?”

“Here’s a hint,” said Anna. “I eat chocolate when I’m nervous.”

“Oh, in that case, yeah, you were freaking out,” Melody declared, and both women laughed. They stared into each other’s eyes. That moment was so perfect that Anna was afraid to say anything and spoil it. She wanted nothing more than to remain there, chatting with Melody for as long as she lived. But moments like those, albeit perfect, never really lasted very long. Melody turned around to look at the setting sun, and when she turned back to Anna, the cute carefree smile on her lips had been replaced with a more serious expression. “I should go,” she said. “I still need to get some things in Atlantica. I’ll meet you in the castle soon.”

Anna nodded. “All right. Take care.”

“You too,” said Melody, swimming away.

Anna turned around and walked back across the beach and toward the castle gardens. She felt lighter than she’d been in months. There was a skip to her steps. That encounter reminded her, for the umpteenth time, that yes, Anna still loved princess Melody very much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I keep thinking I'm close to the end of the story, yet the story itself keeps begging me to go on for a little longer. I'm not even sure anyone's still reading it at this point, but I will keep writing it nonetheless, for myself if not for anyone else.


	17. Chapter 17

Melody’s coronation was… unconventional. As the first Queen of Atlantica born from sea and shore, it stood to reason that the ceremony would have to unite both worlds. The human guests — plus snowman, reindeer and whatnot — came in Eric’s ship, while the sea guests gathered on the surface. The ceremonial speech was given by Sebastian, with Ariel translating in real time for those who could not speak to the creatures of the sea. Nobody had seen Melody so far. Few people were aware that this was not part of the plan. Sebastian, for one, was freaking out. _Like mother, like daughter_ , he’d think, while delivering his speech.

Anna was standing on the port side of the ship, further away from the ceremony, when her peripheral vision caught sight of a hint of red (a red tail?!) She looked to her side, and found Melody in the water, leaning against the ship’s hull.

“Mel?!” Anna whispered. The mermaid responded by placing a finger in front of her lips, ushering her to stay silent.

Eventually, Sebastian ran out of speech, and if Melody didn’t show up that exact moment the whole ceremony would be ruined.

“Princess Melody of Atlantica, come forward.”

Silence. People started to look around, wondering what was going on. Sebastian facepalmed (face-pincered?), but just as he was about to call it quits, a shadow passed over him. Melody had jumped high over her father’s ship, passing in front of the sails and landing right behind the rock where Sebastian was standing. It caused water to splash on him and knock him off his stand. Melody laughed, along with several of her guests.

“Melody, I am way—”

“...too old for this, we get it, Sebastian,” the princess completed, smiling while helping the crab back onto the rock.

“Can we get on with this coronation?” he demanded.

“Sure, sure, let’s do this.”

Melody dove, circled the rock, and reappeared on the other side, in front of her guests. The ceremony carried on, with one of Melody’s aunts being the one to crown her and hand her the trident. There was cheering as Melody was announced the new Queen of Atlantica. Melody smiled at her guests, and decided to address them with a few words.

“My friends… family… the people I love… I thank you all for joining us for this ceremony. It was my grandfather’s wish that I stand before you, today. I don’t feel ready for this. I don’t think there ever will be a day when I will be fully ready to serve you as your Queen. But this doesn’t mean I shouldn’t try. I will not carry this burden alone, of course. My mother and the rest of my family will always be here for each and every one of you, as well as a few special people. Sebastian?”

The crab jumped, surprised. “Who? Me?”

Melody nodded. “For as long as I can remember, you have been the best friend a human mermaid could possibly ask for. You have been loyal to this kingdom for decades, and has gone above and beyond the call of duty in helping my mother and I through these years. I’m thinking a title such as “royal court composer” falls short of how much this kingdom… of how much _I_ owe you. I would like to grant you the title of Sir Sebastian, and invite you to become my Head Advisor in court.”

“Me?!” Sebastian exclaimed, slipping into a falsetto. “W— well, of course, your Majesty.” Melody giggled.

“I have a few more announcements to make, and titles to give. Tip and Dash, please come forward.”

Anna watched as what seemed to be a walrus and a penguin approached Melody.

“Though we live in times of peace, danger always lurks in wait,” Melody continued. “If I am to protect this kingdom from said dangers, I will need two of the bravest heroes in the sea to help me. Will you join my royal guard?”

Tip was the one to speak first.

“You mean you want us? To help? Be actual heroes?”

“Sure do,” said Melody, winking.

Dash bowed, lowering his head into the water. “It would be our honor, your Majesty.”

“Lastly,” said Melody, now staring at Eric’s ship. “I have invited some very dear guests from another nation to attend this celebration, today. Queen Anna of Arendelle, could you please come closer?”

Anna was surprised by Melody’s request, but she obliged, walking to the other side of the ship.

“Queen Anna of Arendelle has been an invaluable friend of mine through the past three years. A dear friend. Now, the Kingdom of Atlantica has always shrouded itself from the countries beyond the shore. It has been done for our protection, and I intend to keep it that way. Nevertheless, the world is changing. We’ve all faced threats before, and I fear that some day even the combined strengths of Algarvia and Atlantica won’t be enough to protect your beloved sea from those who wish to do it harm. So I’ve been looking into possible allies.

“Queen Anna, I believe I speak for both of our kingdoms when I say that our priorities will always be the maintenance of peace, and that we will go to great lengths to achieve that goal. With that in mind, would you be willing to consider an alliance between our kingdoms?”

Anna beamed. “It will be my pleasure, your Majesty.”

The two Queens locked eyes, both smiling, for perhaps just a moment too long. Anna later wondered if anyone noticed it.

“Now,” said Melody, “I believe there is a party waiting for us in the castle. Two parties, in two castles, to be precise. What do you guys say? Let’s get those started!”

—

Anna’d had one too many glasses of white wine. She stepped out into the Algarvia Castle gardens, and sat on a bench while watching the dark, mysterious sea before her. The ocean was pretty by daytime, but it always looked more alluring at night. She remained there for a while, eyes closed, the breeze of the sea on her face. Once she had sobered up a little, she started considering going inside, when a voice called her.

“Anna? Are you there?”

She recognized it as being Melody’s voice. The brunette had come looking for her. Contrary to her expectations, Melody wasn’t wearing a dress, but rather a stunning, perfectly-fitting suit with matching pants. An idea occurred to her.

“Oh, hi, you’re gorgeous,” said Anna. “Did you come for the coronation too?”

Melody’s jaw dropped. “Wait… isn’t that?”

Anna laughed. “Yes, those were the first words you ever said to me.”

“Oh, man…” Melody was clearly flustered. She was probably blushing, though it was too dark to tell for sure.

“I do mean it, though,” said Anna. “You are gorgeous. I’m glad you decided to wear those clothes for the party, you look… stunning.”

There was a tension in the air after Anna said it. The northerner immediately realized her mistake, and took a step back.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound flirty, I was just being honest and stuff.”

“It’s all right,” Melody retorted. “You don’t have to apologize. I remember you telling me that you prefer it when people are honest, rather than shroud in politeness to hide what they’re thinking. So I’m extending that same courtesy to you. And besides…” Melody took a step closer to Anna, and took one of her hands in hers. “…you really are a dear friend of mine. I mean what it said back at the ceremony.”

“Oh,” said Anna, suddenly feeling playful. “Then you weren’t trying to butter me up for the alliance request?”

Melody laughed heartily. “You know I would never do that, Ann.”

Something stirred inside Anna’s chest. These past few days had had a strange effect on her. Hearing Melody’s voice after all these years was bittersweet. Melody’s laugh, in particular, made her heart ache for more. And now they were together again, and the mood was so right. But she couldn’t tell what her friend was thinking about, and she wouldn’t dare make any more mistakes and ruin things a second time. Anna knew that being close friends again was already a small blessing of sorts.

Melody was the one who broke the silence.

“Anna… how do you feel about me?”

The Queen of Arendelle felt her heart skip a beat. “W— what do you mean?”

“You know what I mean,” said Melody, assertive. “Do you still love me?”

Anna tripped on her feet, stumbled and would have fallen flat on her face if Melody hadn’t been there to help her. Melody giggled, which only added to the other girl’s embarrassment. She took a moment to regain her composure, before addressing the Queen of Atlantica.

“Do you want the truth?” she asked. Melody nodded. Anna took a deep breath and braced herself. “Well, in these three years we spent apart, I have not once stopped loving you, Melody.”

There. The truth is out. Suddenly, Anna felt scared, and had an urge to run away. But her hand was still in Melody’s, and that fact alone was enough to make her stay.

“Elsa tells me you’re still single, is that right?” Melody asked, receiving a nod from her friend. “Well… I have been thinking about this, recently, and I… I think I’m finally ready to trust you again.”

Anna couldn’t believe her ears.

“Wait, are you saying that… you and I… really? For real?”

“If you’ll take me.”

Anna only barely managed to stop herself from screaming in joy. “Yes!” she exclaimed. “Yes, yes, a million times yes.” Melody laughed at Anna’s excitement.

“Then I suppose that makes us official,” she remarked. “Again.”

Anna couldn’t contain her happiness. They were both smiling at each other like idiots. Anna raised a hand and caressed Melody’s face. The girl leaned into her touch. “I missed you,” said both girls in unison, and then laughed together at the coincidence. Melody placed a hand on top of Anna’s, and looked up at her with a stare that could say a million things. Anna leaned forward, and they touched lips, carefully, tenderly, then passionately. When it ended, Melody touched her forehead against Anna’s, eyes closed, and whispered:

“I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's a wrap. Thanks for reading my story, I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I loved writing it.


End file.
